2SLGBTQIA+ Resources

SUPPORTS AND SERVICES

• Qmunity - A community centre in Vancouver that offers a variety of services for the 2SLGBTQIA+ community including educational workshops, counselling, community events, peer support groups, and referrals to other services.
• FNHA-2SLGBTQQIA-Resource-List.pdf- A detailed list of 2SLGBTQQIA+ Programs and Organizations developed by the First Nations Health Authority.
• Get Help - It Gets Better Canada - If you are in crisis or in need of immediate help in Canada, please text or call one of the numbers provided here or find a local resource near you.
• Among Friends (2SLGBTQI+) Programs – Access Alliance – Programs and services for two-spirit, lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, queer and intersex newcomers.
• Chronically Queer - Chronically Queer (CQ) is for 2SLGBTQIA+ people who are neurodivergent, mad, crip, chronically ill, and/or disabled. CQ recognizes that disability is an umbrella term that includes, but is not limited to: physical, sensory, senses, respiratory, cognitive, mental health, learning, temporary, episodic, invisible/non-evident, self-diagnosed, and more.
• 2 Spirits in Motion Society- Creates, maintains and strengthens a safe and supportive social environment for Two Spirit peoples to feel and be loved, to succeed, to become empowered to make their own decisions and to find and express their purpose in life.
• Canadian Parents of Trans, two-Spirit & Gender-Diverse Kids/Parents canadiens d’enfants trans: Canadian Parents of Trans & Gender Diverse Kids is a support group for parents and guardians of gender diverse children, youth, and adults, including those who are two-spirit, transgender, genderqueer, non-binary, agender, gender fluid, gender creative, or gender-questioning!
• LGBT National Youth Talkline 1-800-246-7743: Providing confidential peer support, info and resources for caller 25 and younger.
• PFLAG Canada 1-888-530-6777: Provides peer support, education, and advocacy for a Canada that affirms respects and values all sexualities, genders and gender expressions.
• LGBT National Coming Out Support Hotline 1-888-OUT-LGBT (1-888-688-5428): Help available if you are struggling with coming out to yourself, coming out to friends & family, facing fear and isolation or searching for local resources.

JOIN

• HSA 2SLGBTQIA+ Members Caucus - All HSA members who identify as 2SLGBTQIA+ (Two-spirit; Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans, Queer, Intersex, Asexual Plus) are invited to attend meetings of HSA's 2SLGBTQIA+ members Caucus. The caucus is an open space for members to connect, share issues, build solidarity, and organize to make the union more gender inclusive.
• 2SLGBTQIA+ Workers | bcfed.ca – BCFed’s caucus represents workers who identify as 2SLGBTQIA+. This group is a caucus of the BC Federation of Labour and serves as a place for 2SLGBTQIA+ workers to network, and to discuss issues of focus for people who are members of the 2SLGBTQIA+ community at work and in society.

TAKE ACTION

• Tips on how to practice 2SLGBTQI Allyship - Egale – a starting point on how to practice allyship with 2SLGBTQIA+ folks.
• Being an LGBTQ+ Ally - HRC Digital Reports – This guide helps answer questions about how you can better support the 2SLGBTQIA+ community.
• Momentum - Runs programming and advocacy campaigns that help 2SLGBTQIA+ people thrive. Areas of focus — confronting hate, promoting mental health, realizing the rights of 2SLGBTQIA+ children and youth, and ending gender-based violence — guide their work alongside 2SLGBTQIA+ communities. Sign up for their newsletter to hear about and sign onto their campaigns.
• BCFS (bcflyingsquad.ca) – Consider joining the BC Flying Squad Against Transphobia.

READ / LEARN

• Pride & Labour: There Might Not Have Been One Without the Other – Article on significant Queer & Labour Rights Relationships in Canada.
• We Keep Each Other Safe: A Guide for Unions to Address Anti-2SLGBTQI+ Hate at Work | Canadian Labour Congress
• Canadian Labour Congress LGBTQ2SI Bargaining Guide - This guide will provide you with tools to craft collective agreement language that promotes the rights of 2SLGBTQIA+ members.
• Working for Change: Understanding the employment experiences of Two Spirit, Trans, and nonbinary people in Canada - Egale - Captures a more extensive understanding of the employment landscape that Two Spirit, trans, and nonbinary (2STNB) people in Canada navigate. 
• Qmunity Resources – A list of print resources, grouped by categories, on a variety of topics from coming out tips to sexual health information to healthy relationships advice.
• Reports, Guides & Toolkits - Pride At Work Canada - Resources to help build workplaces that celebrate all employees regardless of gender expression, gender identity, and sexual orientation.
• Queering the Compass: Pathways to 2S/LGBTQIA+ Sexual and Reproductive Health – Community Based Research Centre (CBRC)’s Online modules on Intersectional Affirming Care; Confronting Ableism, Stigma, and Bias in Sexual and Reproductive Health; Abortion is Queer Reproductive Justice; and Weaving the threads of Inclusive Care for 2S/LGBTQIA+ people. 
• Queer Care Kit – A project developed to translate academic research to the public on the mental health and well-being of 2SLGBTQIA+ communities.
• Restoring the Circle - Overview - E-learning program on providing trauma-informed, culturally safe, and intersectional services for, to, and with 2SLGBTQ+ Indigenous people with lived experience of gender-based violence.
• Providing Diversity Competent Care to Two-Spirit Clients - A Handbook for Health Care Providers.
• Published Research - Egale – Several research reports that provide tools and information for 2SLGBTQIA+ people & communities, service providers, and organizations.
• LGBTQ+ Town Hall Canada - Program focused on public policy, being at the forefront of cultural change, and encouraging human rights through education, awareness, and legal advocacy.
• 2SLGBTQIA+ Inclusion | YMCA Canada – This page provides a list of significant dates related to the 2SLGBTQIA+ community, external resources, and related YMCA programs and initiatives across Canada.
• Summer Reads 2022: Our Top 12 Gender-Inclusive Books for Queer Youth & Allies That Take Us Beyond the Binary - It Gets Better Canada – A list of books by various genderqueer and allied authors from Canada and around the world.
• Take Pride in Your Shelf | Penguin Random House Canada – A list of books that feature 2SLGBTQia+ stories and authors.

WATCH

• Film Catalogue - Out On Screen - Out In Schools is an award-winning program with more than 15 years of experience in BC’s education system. Sign up to enjoy access to the Out In Schools film library.
• 2SLGBTQI+ - NFB - Featuring a wide range of stories about identity, family, community and everyday life, this selection of films explores the multitude of 2SLGBTQI+ realities and experiences in Canada and abroad.
• Love is love | TED Talks - These moving talks share stories of love and commitment in the 2SLGBTQIA+ community.
• On coming out | TED Talks - Powerful, personal stories of sharing one's identity with the world.
• Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity (Ages 15-17) - NFB - This playlist asks its viewers to consider the multitude of stories experienced by 2SLGBTQIA+ individuals and communities to create deeper, more empathetic understandings of what it means to be 2SLGBTQIA+.
• Vancouver Pride Learning Series - Queer Mental Health Panel – The Learning series is a multidisciplinary initiative that strives to create a platform that uplifts, inspires, and reconnects individuals of the 2SLGBTQIA+ Community. It is an in-dept look at stories from equity-deserving groups that will showcase their Queer lived experience with mental health through video content and an online discussion.
• Community Based Research Centre (CBRC) – How We’re Represented in Research on Cancer and Chronic Health – From CBRC’s 2023 Summit, three health researchers discuss their findings on: Who is represented in sexual minority cancer care research? A scoping review (Mikayla Hunter); Beyond the Binary: Gender diversity in cancer health services research (Morgan Stirling); Engaging 2SLGBTQIA+ communities in citizen science to co-develop research priorities for chronic pain (Codie Primeau)
• Our Experiences Navigating Through Healthcare | Community Based Research Centre (CBRC) – From CBRC’s 2023 Summit, 4 presentations on 2SLGBTQIA+ individuals experiences navigating the health care system including: We need healthcare to be anti-misogynistic: Healthcare access experiences and needs among LBQ, women, trans, and non-binary people in Canada (Egale Canada and Celeste Pang); Two-Spirit peoples experiences accessing and receiving care in community pharmacies (Dr. Jaris Swidrovich); Believe me-health equity for gender and sexual diverse communities (PeerNet BC); The Good, the bad, and the ugly – The experiences of underrepresented 2SLGBTQIA+ young adult primary healthcare patients (Mikayla Hunter)
• Pride (2014) - IMDb - U.K. gay activists work to help miners during their lengthy strike of the National Union of Mineworkers in the summer of 1984.
• Miss Juwanna deWitt is a 77-year-old drag queen on a mission to help us all love ourselves (youtube.com) - Miss Juwanna deWitt is just one of the extraordinary subjects featured in Canada’s a Drag, a docu-series from CBC Arts that celebrates drag artists who are pushing through the darkness to give us all more light. 

LISTEN

• Stream Two Spirit Talks  - Hear from members of the Two-Spirit community about ceremonies, songs, and stories of solidarity that are helping us to build upon the diverse teachings of the past towards a brighter Indigenous future for all.
• Out & About in Canada | Queer Podcasts - An LGBTQ+ variety show from Vancouver that chats about queer life in Canada and beyond and showcases music from queer Canadian artists.
• Podcast – InterPride – Podcast that brings on guests from all over the world to broaden the audience’s understanding of queer, trans, and Pride culture and politics and to invite listeners into a vibrant conversation about the issues that are animating the global LGBTQIA+ communities.