SQUINCH for Families Project:
Helping Family Members Become Better Advocates for their LGBTQ+ Kids
SQUINCH stands for “Sharing Queer Understanding, Inclusion, Nonviolent Communication, and Health”
WHAT WE KNOW
All young people deserve communities that support them to be their whole selves.
Lesbian, gay, bisexual, queer, questioning, trans, nonbinary, intersex, asexual, and two-spirit young people of New Mexico (LGBTQ+)are a treasure and deserve a life free from violence like everyone else.
Parents, family members, and caring adults want, need, and are asking for support in understanding their young people’s sexuality and gender identities.
Parents, family members, and caring adults are leaders in their communities who shape the culture and influence attitudes that deeply affect young people at crucial times in their lives.
LGBTQ+ young people need adults around them to believe them, trust them, respect them, and advocate for their rights.
New Mexico values family. Queer and trans youth are our family.
Having a caring adult in their lives will save young people from suicide, substance use, and diseases of despair.
Queer and trans youth are at the crosshairs of political violence.
New Mexico has the most legal protections of any other state, but the lived experience of homophobia, biphobia, and transphobia is higher than the national average.
Art will save us.
WHAT WE’RE DOING ABOUT IT
Health Equity Alliance for LGBTQ+ New Mexicans (HEAL Plus NM) has developed SQUINCH for Families, an open source curriculum for parents and families of LGBTQ+ youth. SQUINCH stands for “Sharing Queer Understanding, Inclusion, Nonviolent Communication, and Health.” This multimedia curriculum is designed to equip parents, family members, and caregivers with the skills and tools to listen, understand, support, and advocate for the LGBTQ+ youth they love.
SQUINCH for Families will launch in the Spring 2025 with a statewide tour of Queer Futures Now, a brand new play, written by Allison Kenny and Danielle Simone of High Desert Playback, from the real-life stories of LGBTQ+ youth from across New Mexico. In the Spring of 2024, Allison, Danielle, and the High Desert Playback company traveled to rural and urban areas of New Mexico, hosting interactive story circles for LGBTQ+ youth ages 16-24. From there, they conducted more in-depth interviews with a diverse range of youth where they asked them questions like:
What has your gender and sexuality journey been like?
Can you tell us about a time someone (a friend or adult ally) really showed up for you?
What do you wish your parents and caregivers knew?
What resources do they need to better understand your identity and make more safe spaces for you?
The artists then compiled all of the stories and responses and synthesized the overall themes according to the young people:
Queer + Trans humans have a right to a peaceful existence and joy beyond imagination
It is 100% normal to be queer + trans. We are not aliens.
We are design thinkers. LGBTQ+ youth are building a world where ALL humans can thrive safely in all our intersectional identities.
What resulted is Queer Futures Now—a blend of sci-fi, thriller, adventure, and dance party. Set on the banks of the Rio Chama in Northern New Mexico, the play follows four queer and trans youths on their journey to safety and shows the path to paradise is closer than we think.
Based on the interview data and the themes of the play, HEAL Plus NM is working in collaboration with parents, therapists, and our youth advisory board, to complete the curriculum that will live online and be available for free for New Mexico families and beyond.
DONATE
Support us in bringing a beacon of queer and trans joy to communities around our state of New Mexico. Your donation will help gather crucial support for LGBTQ+ people, inspire bold action in allies, and connect families to resources.
Now, we need your help to take this live, theatrical production on the road to four cities in New Mexico. The play will gather community allies, young people, and their families to uplift the voices of LGBTQ+ young people and the adults who love them.
We need $35,000 to put on this play. This budget includes paying actors, the director, stage crew, travel costs, promotion, and film crew to create digital content for our curriculum. We believe artists are our visionary changemakers. We believe in paying artists a living wage, and we want to make these performances free and accessible to all community members. We have raised $22,500 so far, so we need your help to raise $12,500.
PILOT TEST
Would you like to be some of the first people to try out our curriculum with your family members?
STAND WITH QUEER + TRANS YOUTH
Do you know/work with queer and trans young people, ages 16-24, who you think may want to participate in this project? Want to help us spread the word?
