“It does get better” ~ The L Project wins award for contribution to LGBT community

 

 

The L Project is run by Sofia Antonia Milone and Georgey Payne of Greymatter. It’s aims are to raise awareness about the effects of LGBT bullying, to give hope to those suffering from it, and to raise money to help combat it.

The project has produced an anti-LGBT-bullying song called It Does Get Better.

“Back in October of 2011 The L Project, initiated by singer-songwriter Georgey Payne, brought together a group of UK music artists with the intention of recording a song she had penned. That song was It Does Get Better and it was initially written by Georgey in an attempt to cheer up a young friend who had confided in her that he had been the subject of homophobic bullying in school. Georgey quickly realised that the positive message of hope that her song conveyed was one that people all over the world could benefit from whether LGBT or not. Simply put, this song is for anyone who experiences the struggles that can come with being different, and the message is clear ‘It Does Get Better’, do not give up hope.

Nowhere is that more evident than in the growing online community that have turned out to support the project since the release of the song on February 11th 2012. The facebook page for the project is littered with wonderful messages from around the globe, from those who have been brought back from the brink of desperation, to those who have been spurred to action by the pure drive and tenacity the project coordinators have shown in their unending devotion to spreading the ‘L’.

What started out as a song, has become a community, a bigger force than either of the co-ordinators could have foreseen. ‘The response we've had is just tremendous, and we have decided the release of this song is just the first of many projects to come’, says Sofia Antonia Milone.”

 

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And on Friday, 23 March 2012, the L Project received the Outstanding Contribution to the LGBT Community Award at The Pride Ball.

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Reading Borough Council awards £10,000 grant for LGBT community ‘Support U’ centre

 

Councillors at the full Reading Borough Council meeting unanimously backed a motion to give the ‘Support U’ initiative assistance with accommodation and £10,000 in start-up funding for a support centre that will become the hub for the LGBT community, providing various services to at no cost.

The focus of the Support Centre will be to offer advice, support and guidance on LGBT issues to those that need it.

Support U is a registered charity promoting equality and diversity in the Reading area, with a specific focus on the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender community. Their aims are to advance education and eliminate discrimination for the benefit of the public by:

• Raising awareness in issues involving discrimination. 
• Developing an environment in favour of equality. 
• Provide information, advice and support to the public.

Support U advocates for social inclusion by:

• Providing social activities for the public. 
• Actively seeking opportunities to develop social inclusion.

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Support U

When Diversity Matters... Support U is a charity in Reading that will be looking to open a community/advice centre in Reading, to offer services to the general public to promote acceptance of diversity.

Support U is a new charity in Reading and the surround areas, that will provide a community hub for LGBT Charities.
With this centre, we will be looking to strengthen the LGBT services for the general public and provide that all important connection that Reading currently does not have. We will be looking to promote acceptance of diversity in the wider community.

If you would like to get involved, please email support@supportu.org.uk

Rebekah’s Story: A Tale of the Recession in Berkshire’s LGBT Community

 

The British economy will take years to recover, we are told. Here in Berkshire, along with everywhere else in the UK and the world, things are tough right now. For Berkshire builder, Rebekah Maidment-Cameron, these tough times are particularly difficult.

“Unfortunately, as far as work goes,” Rebekah told us here at Gay Berkshire: The LGBT Network, “very little seems to come my way, although I have been recommended many, many times.”

Rebekah began her career as a builder in London, before her gender reassignment surgery four years ago and moving to Berkshire. “I was shocked when the majority of my friends in London dropped me like a shot, soon as I declared my intentions to change gender. Funny really, because I was never some big butch builder. I lost the job I had with the building company I was working for in North London.”

Rebekah forged ahead, relocated and found other work, but after her surgery, she developed life-threatening complications that made it impossible for her to continue work for some time. So she lost her next job, since she was in no fit condition to return to work.

“So, I started working alongside my partner’s brother (which helped) and had a good run for a while, doing work for friends and they recommended us to others. Problem is, outside of the circle, work just went dead. I think that people who do not know me well, feel uncomfortable recommending me and/or contracting me in the first place. Whether that is because I'm a transsexual woman-? or a lady builder-? Maybe they cannot get their heads round what I am, or do not believe that I can do the job as well as a straight man? All of my neighbours know what I do for a living, but get other builders in to do the work for them. Strange but true!”

Not one to just sit back and let these economic times get the best of her, Rebekah is pressing on – creating a website and seeking new avenues to advertise, such as Pinke.biz, a search facility to help you find LGBT-friendly businesses in your area.

Times are tough for so many of us and Gay Berkshire is a county wide group which aims to give a stronger voice to the local lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community. Rebekah’s is just one voice in our LGBT community, but we are sure her frustrations echo those of many, so this is a voice that needed to be heard.

“Reading Gay Chorus: Picnic Basket” ~ the Thames Valley’s LGBT choir summer concert

 

Please see the website for more information: http://www.rgc.gb.com/

“In or Out. Does it Matter?” ~ Brian Paddick is confirmed speaker for International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia & Transphobia

 

7pm Tuesday 17th May, 2011 Reading Police Station, RSVP to TVGPA@thamesvalley.pnn.police