Support on Campus

Romina Julian
Contributor
Excalibur’s Queer and Trans Supplement is the perfect place to mention that York has their own LGBTQ alliance group. For those who don’t know, I’m talking about a group who serve not only the queer and trans community, but the entire York population in general – the Trans Bisexual Lesbian Gay Alliance at York (or TBLGAY).
TBLGAY is a student-run service that focuses on creating a safe space for students and people in the York Community who are queer and trans-identified. They offer support and resources to anyone in the queer and queer-friendly community, and educate the York community through various workshops. They work from an anti-oppression system, so they don’t discriminate against anyone, no matter their race or religion.
Alastair Woods, TBLGAY external coordinator, is responsible for creating a liaison with outside groups, organizing events and workshops and acting as spokes- person. He often shares duties with internal coordinator Aaron M., whose responsibilities include keeping a safe-space environment and liaising with the other chairs at TBLGAY.
TBLGAY has many events planned for the 2010-2011 school year: they’re even inviting several acts from downtown Toronto to York later this year, with the continued goal of building a strong community at York University. Recently, they collaborated with the York Federation of Students (YFS) and filmed a series of videos for the “It Gets Better” campaign in response to the recent suicides among gay teens. Check out the YFS account, YFSLocal68, on YouTube, where you’ll even find a response from Mayor David Miller.
TBLGAY is often thought of as just a “social space.” While it is a place to socialize with people who are like-minded, it is also a place for resources for everyone in the York community – anyone is welcome.
For more information, contact TBLGAY via telephone at 416-736-2100 ext. 20494 or by email at tblgay@yorku.ca. They also have an office, room 449A in the Student Centre.