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Gender 101— beyond the binary: Gay-straight alliances and gender activism

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Abstract

This article seeks to expand the discourse on sexuality education in the United States by examining ways in which youth are mobilizing to educate their own schools and communities about gender identity. The author conducted a descriptive case study within the GSA (Gay-Straight Alliance) Network, a youth-based community organization in the San Francisco Bay Area that provides leadership and networking opportunities for youth involved in gay-straight alliance clubs throughout California. Youth in this community are significantly expanding the categories of sexual and gender identification, which they situate directly within an activist and educational outreach agenda in their schools. This article explores how gender activism and educational outreach focus on a right to be protected from discrimination and also a right to expand the possibilities for gender identity and expression.

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Correspondence to Jennifer E. Schindel.

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Schindel, J.E. Gender 101— beyond the binary: Gay-straight alliances and gender activism. Sex Res Soc Policy 5, 56–70 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1525/srsp.2008.5.2.56

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