Jeannie Gainsburg - The Savvy Ally: A Guide for Becoming a Skilled Lgbtq+ Advocate

Jeannie Gainsburg is an educational trainer and consultant in the field of LGBTQ+ inclusion and effective ally-ship. Formerly the education director at the Out Alliance in Rochester, New York, she has personally facilitated or cofacilitated more than five hundred trainings and workshops in more than twenty different states at corporations, colleges, government agencies, K12 schools, hospitals, faith communities, and more. Gainsburg has a BA in psychology from Brown University and an MA in social work and social research from Bryn Mawr College. She was under the impression that a citation was the result of driving too fast until January 2019, when she received one from the New York State Assembly for Distinguished Educational & Human Rights Services for her work in promoting LGBTQ+ rights and inclusion. The Savvy Ally is her first book. Visit her website and download free informational handouts at www.savvyallyaction.com.

T his book would not have been possible without the support, knowledge, time, and generosity of the people below. An enormous thank-you goes out to:

• Ed Freedman, for encouraging all adventures and for giving the gift that started it all.
• Julie Gainsburg, for the many hours you put into editing this book, for all the Oxford commas, and for being there for me no matter what.
• Hayden Freedman, for listening to every voice and for showing me what truly inclusive diversity conversations look like.
• Becca Gainsburg, for reminding me to reach higher and for making me laugh.
• Vicki and Roy Gainsburg, for raising me in a household where equality was a no-brainer.
• Pam Polashenski, for showing me what badassery truly looks like.
• Scott Fearing, for sharing the assume goodwill philosophy that is at the heart of this book and for creating a safe space for me to come out as a loud and proud ally.
• Noah Wagoner, for being my social justice go-to guy and for being an ally to the world.
• The wonderful team at Rowman & Littlefield: Mark Kerr, Courtney Packard, Jessica McCleary, Karin Cholak, and Meghann French.
• My personal reviewers, editors, and advisors: Tim Ackroyd, Steve Brosnihan, Julie Buchanan, Oona Foxe, Tovia Freedman, Alice Glinert, Shimona Gorelick, Christopher Hennelly, Chris Hinesley, Elizabeth Olson, Anastasia Polashenski, Tallis Polashenski, Walter Polashenski, Bev Mondillo Wright, and Steve Wright.
• Everyone who made this book come alive with their personal stories, insights, and experiences: Jason Ballard, Sam Cappiello, Rowan Collins, Maur DeLaney, Joe Doty, Daniel Fox, Todd Gordon, Gabrielle Hermosa, Sean Johnston, Mike Kelly, Matt Krueger, Eridan Maeder, Wanda Martinez-Johncox, Lore McSpadden, Kayden Eli Miller, Dee Murray, Manuel Pea, Maya Polashenski, Ronald Pratt, Craig Ronald, Gloria Ronga, Susan Rubin, Matt Tappon, Deborah Trubatch, Jonathan Wetherbee, Owen Zacharias, and Sara Zacharias.
• And Carlos the cat, for all of the snuggle breaks and for letting me mess with your pronouns.

AAA Project Visibility. Project Visibility. Boulder, CO: Boulder County Area Agency on Aging, 2004. DVD.

Amnesty International. Safety during Protest [flyer]. https://www.amnestyusa.org/pdfs/SafeyDuringProtest_F.pdf.

Arana, Gabriel. The Truth about Gay Men and Pedophilia. INTO, November 16, 2017. https://www.intomore.com/impact/The-Truth-About-Gay-Men-and-Pedophilia.

Ayvazian, Andrea. Creating Conversations: Becoming a White Ally. Filmed at Greenfield Community College, Greenfield, MA, November 23, 2010. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yXZPHc6MkLI.

Beckham, Ash. I am SO GAY. Speech given at Ignite Boulder, Boulder, CO, March 2, 2013. http://www.ignitetalks.io/videos/i-am-so-gay.

Bird, Jackson. How to Talk (and Listen) to Transgender People. TED, June 2017. https://www.ted.com/talks/jackson_bird_how_to_talk_and_listen_to_transgender_people?language=en#t-15186.

Bornstein, Kate. Gender Outlaw. New York: Vintage Books, 1995.

Cass, Vivienne. Homosexual Identity Formation: A Theoretical Model. Journal of Homosexuality 4, no. 3 (spring 1979): 21935. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/264126.

Chevigny, Katy, Beth Davenport, and Jolene Pinder (producers) and Angela Tucker (director). (A)sexual. New York: FilmBuff, 2012. DVD.

Clarey, Christopher. Gender Test after a Gold-Medal Finish. New York Times, August 19, 2009. https://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/20/sports/20runner.html.

Clark, Dorie. North Carolinas Bathroom Bill Repeal Wont Bring the NCAA Back. Fortune, March 30, 2017. http://fortune.com/2017/03/30/north-carolina-bathroom-bill-hb2-hb142-repeal-ncaa-lgbt/.

CNBC. Bathroom Bill to Cost North Carolina $3.76 Billion. March, 27, 2017. https://www.cnbc.com/2017/03/27/bathroom-bill-to-cost-north-carolina-376-billion.html.

Colapinto, John. As Nature Made Him: The Boy Who Was Raised as a Girl. New York: HarperCollins, 2000.

Crenshaw, Kimberl. The Urgency of Intersectionality. Speech given at TEDWomen 2016, December 7, 2016. https://www.ted.com/talks/kimberle_crenshaw_the_ur gency_of_intersectionality?language=en.

Fearing, Scott. Successful GLBT Education: A Manual. Minneapolis: OutFront Minnesota, 1996.

Fox, Catherine O., and Tracy E. Ore. (Un) Covering Normalized Gender and Race Subjectivities in LGBT Safe Spaces. Feminist Studies 36, no. 3 (fall 2010): 62949.

Hanna, Jason, Madison Park, and Eliott C. McLaughlin. North Carolina Repeals Bathroom Bill. CNN Politics, March 30, 2017. https://www.cnn.com/2017/03/30/politics/north-carolina-hb2-agreement/index.html.

Hasenbush, Amira. What Does Research Suggest about Transgender Restroom Policies? Education Week, June 8, 2016. https://www.edweek.org/ew/articles/2016/06/08/what-does-research-suggest-about-transgender-restroom.html.

Herek, Gregory M. Facts about Homosexuality and Child Molestation. Sexual Orientation: Science, Education, and Policy. https://psychology.ucdavis.edu/rainbow/html/facts_molestation.html.

Hida. How Common Is Intersex? An Explanation of the Stats. Intersex Campaign for Equality, April 1, 2015. https://www.intersexequality.com/how-common-is-intersex-in-humans/.

Human Rights Campaign (HRC). Corporate Equality Index 2019. Last updated April 4, 2019. https://assets2.hrc.org/files/assets/resources/CEI-2019-FullReport.pdf?_ga=2.72494480.2003376306.1571331256-1109047636.1571331256.

. The Lies and Dangers of Efforts to Change Sexual Orientation or Gender Identity. https://www.hrc.org/resources/the-lies-and-dangers-of-reparative-therapy.

. State Maps of Laws & Policies. https://www.hrc.org/state-maps/.

. Violence against the Transgender Community in 2018. https://www.hrc.org/resources/violence-against-the-transgender-community-in-2018.

. A Workplace Divided: Understanding the Climate for LGBTQ Workers Nationwide. https://assets2.hrc.org/files/assets/resources/AWorkplaceDivided-2018.pdf?_ga=2.74196113.2003376306.1571331256-1109047636.1571331256.

. Workplace Gender Transition Guidelines. https://www.hrc.org/resources/workplace-gender-transition-guidelines.

James, S. E., J. L. Herman, S. Rankin, et al. The Report of the 2015 U.S. Transgender Survey. Washington, DC: National Center for Transgender Equality, 2016. https://transequality.org/sites/default/files/docs/usts/USTS-Full-Report-Dec17.pdf.

The Joint Commission. Advancing Effective Communication, Cultural Competence, and Patient- and Family-Centered Care for the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) Community: A Field Guide