Sharing LGBT books a passion for teen
The Make It Safe Project, born in November, donates boxes of 10 fiction and nonfiction books on LGBT themes to schools and youth homeless shelters where such resources are otherwise unavailable.
Sex educationBecause schools' health curricula rarely cover topics outside the scope of heterosexual relationships, nonfiction books are also crucial for basic sex education as well as advice on how to come out in a positive way.
[...] Amelia has done far more than engage in virtual debates.
[...] she took the leap into high school - and national advocacy, as a student ambassador for the Gay Lesbian Straight Education Network.
During a gathering of the network, she discovered she wasn't the only one whose school lacked LGBT literature - all 17 of the other student ambassadors from across the country had encountered similar obstacles.
In addition to being accessible, accurate, realistic and age-appropriate depictions of LGBT life that are well written and give helpful advice, they have to be "kind and accepting of all religions and political views," Amelia says, rattling off her meticulous list of requirements.
Titles like "Annie on My Mind," a love story about two teenage girls in New York City, hold special meaning for her, having been pivotal during her own coming-out experience.
Amelia hopes that Make it Safe, which is on its way to becoming a registered nonprofit organization, will eventually reach all 50 states and go international on a larger scale, giving 100,000 kids in schools and LGBTQ-inclusive youth homeless shelters around the world access to books within the next couple of years.
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