A few counselors who intended to present a workshop at an upcoming SAMHSA (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration) on suicide prevention in GLBT communities were asked to remove “GLBT” from the title of the workshop. Instead of the title being “Suicide Prevention in GLBT Communities” the suggested title is “Suicide Prevention in Vulnerable Communities.”
Likewise, any mention of “gender identity” was removed from the workshop’s description (although “sexual orientation” was allowed to remain).
Workshops with the previous title had been given at two other SAMHSA Conferences, but both before our last presidential election.
Currently there’s stonewalling going on, where the counsellors are being told it was all a “misunderstanding,” but no-one has said the original wording is now okay. The counsellors will be speaking to some members of the media about this tomorrow, and hopefully, they will take the lead.
In the meantime, there are few representatives you can contact to lodge a complaint. Please see the MHB forums for further information.