Hi, my name is Jen, I'm 21 years old and I'm one of the young in the world of gender
concerns. Gender concerns is a novel organisation that works with young transgender people
who are 13 and 25 years old. We have got the youth group meetings, we have asked for projects, I'm going to do this for activities as well as for our communities.
The GIs are part of an organisation that supports women in the trans community, and so I always think of new ways to achieve our goals and requirements such as this.
What we need to do for today is to help fund a swimming session at our alchemy annual youth camp for the youth, which is going to be next month.
The GI youth camping trip is held over four days, it's going to be 26 young trans people and 15 and 24, having time for their life at a campsite as it is.
We're going to be doing lots of great activities, such as rock building, the fame, kayaking and the online gym swimming.
There's also going to be a lot of socializing with friends, there's going to be campfires, there's going to be, like,
and there's going to be a lot of fun, and it's going to be really, really great to find. It's really important for transgender youth to have these sorts of experiences.
Trans youth have it really quite hard. We have increased shots of bullying, mental health problems as well as increased shots of self harm and suicide.
And so I always say today to trans youth to have fun, be with friends and explore themselves is quite important.
Every single person going on the trip, including all the workers, are trans-identified, and that's really important for all young people.
It means so much for everyone attending that everyone on the staff that they're going through are able to appreciate what they're supposed to expect in each other in a way that they're not trying to be part of it, not necessarily human to them.
So one of the activities we want to do over the four day weekend is a swimming activity, which is going to cost us a little bit extra.
Because we need the pool privately and we need to hire a lifeguard, it's going to cost an extra three hundred and fifty pounds.
And most of the young trans people go swimming once a week at the university because of body issues, don't they?
This week, that's a dream for many of the young people who go swimming in the years.
Many of us stop swimming because of all the different problems that you face.
Such as gender changing problems, people are asking a lot of interesting questions and also people mention body issues.
The swimming session of the Camping Trip will be a chance to give everyone a chance to go swimming in a safe environment with body worries.
Wherever there are gender rights in society, such as gender issues, trans and non-binary people will have lots of difficulties.
We're sort of working to make that a lot easier for trans people, but at the moment we're all going to come out to drive.
So why don't you tell us, swimming activity in the Camping Trip is going to cost us a little bit extra.
So if you put it, it's a lot better value and hopefully more people will be able to attend.
If we do a solo swimming trip, not many people will be able to go because people don't have the confidence to go.
They don't know who's going to be there and having it inside the Camping Trip will give people the confidence that everyone there, they know and they trust.
Because ultimately the session is going to be an answer to us.
This is going to allow more of an extended group to have a chance to go about that courage and do something that they've not been able to do for many years.
I know personally that I haven't gone swimming in over eight years and it's something that I just do all the time.
I used to love it and it is something that I've been able to do.
So imagine 26 young trans and non-binary people just doing the most simple thing, going for a swim with their friends.
They'll be seeing a lot of us, but it's going to make such a difference.
Every single person here can make a difference.
Please vote for us.
It seems to us that we've not always been forced to go swimming.
A lot of people are actually thinking that we should go to get your ticket, but we're not.
We're not sure if we're going to go swimming or just sit in a pool and just go out and try to go over the entry section.
It's no sort of forcing everybody to go into the pool.
Thank you.
