LGBTQ seminar aims for understanding, assurance


Halifax County will gain insight on the LGBTQ movement this week with an educational seminar on Thursday, Nov. 5. The Halifax County Special Victims Coalition presents their “Understanding & Protecting the LGBTQ Community” forum at The Prizery from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

The acronym stands for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Questioning — representing a non-heterosexual community that spans a range of sexual and gender identities.

“I’m excited about the program,” said Carol Gravitt, a Halifax lawyer and driving force behind the seminar. Gravitt is a legal representative for Department of Social Services in Halifax and three surrounding counties. “We’ve had around 70 people sign up, and we’re getting more every day.”

Organizations like the Halifax County Special Victims Coalition support LGBTQ through education, outreach and advocacy towards equality. Locally, the seminar and officials involved seek to address issues within the Southside community.

“Because we are a conservative area, I think that our LGBTQ community is very quiet and not front and center,” Gravitt observed. “And yet, I understand that it is a significant community.”

Gravitt, proud mother of a gay son, said her interest in this project arose not only for personal reasons, but because she has “an interest in people being treated fairly and appropriately.”

The seminar will feature a variety of professional speakers discussing topics from their respective backgrounds. Multi-disciplinary child welfare workers, including social workers, law enforcement, educators, guidance counselors, foster parents, attorneys, guardians ad litem, judges, court personnel and medical staff, are asked to attend this educational event to gain a more enlightened perspective on issues within the community. The seminar also welcomes the general public.

“Our group is weighted heavily in favor of social workers,” said Gravitt. “There’s this big piece about foster care in the seminar, and that’s really important because the social workers are dealing with kids who are maybe questioning.”

The Special Victims Coalition began five years ago in order to work towards specialized cases of child abuse, neglect, sexual assault and mistreatment.

“It sort of started with this notion of ‘How can we better serve this population of special victims?’” Gravitt said. “We’re just trying to get educated, and we see this group often getting victimized.”

Specifically, children involved with the LGBTQ community are more likely to be victimized.

“We have parents who cannot accept the gender orientation or gender identity issues with their kids, where the children become the subject of physical abuse,” Gravitt explained.

“Some of these children become victimized from sexual abuse, being bullied at school or having problems with their peers.”

The seminar will open with a discussion, “Appropriate Terminology and Handling Discomfort” where panel members will openly share their personal experiences and perspectives on self-identification issues.

Hosts of the first discussion are Svetlana Durkovic, an Advocate and Organizer of Bosnia and Washington D.C., Kara Pethybridge, a Tenth Circuit, Virginia, Attorney from Durham N.C., Amanda Williams, a social worker and foster parent from Gainesville, Fla., Bradley Bass, a Musical Theatre Artist in Residence at Averett University, and a self-identified LGBTQ foster care youth.

After a break, the program will turn to the topic, “Addressing the Needs Of and Advocating For LGBTQ Youth,” presented by Mimi Laver, Director of Legal Education, ABA Center on Children and the Law of Washington D.C.

Speakers will address the unique needs of young people, specifically focusing on those involved in the child welfare system. The conversation will also highlight the ways in which professionals can interact with LGBTQ youth to improve their experience with the system.

Following lunch, a third session “The Fight For Rights: Stonewell To Marriage & Beyond” will feature Gail M. Deady, a Secular Society Women’s Rights Legal Fellow from ACLU of Virginia. This will cover a brief history of the legal treatment of the LGBTQ community and the fight for equality.

The next topic will be broken up into a two-part segment, presented by Dr. Kristen Shrewsbury of James Madison University. She studies Heteronormativity, the belief that heterosexuality is normal and variations are deviant. “The Impact of Heteronormativity” will review recent research on the lived experience of marriage equality in conservative areas and how religious and personal beliefs influence perceptions and treatment.

After a break, Shrewsbury will continue into part two, “Normalizing Queerness and The Performance of Heteronormativity: Building Social Capital From a Marginalized Position.” Here the professor will give answers to questions set in a socially conservative context.

The final discussion, “How We Can Help To Improve Services To Our LGBTQ Clients and Community” will be put on by the previous speakers in a panel discussion format.

The cost to attend the seminar is $20, with lunch included. Registration is required; contact Carol Gravitt at 434-476-6519 or .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) or contact Vicki Irby at 434-830-0644 or .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *