do hetero youth have a space where (only) they can hang out?

@1: Straight kids aren't banned from it.

I always imagined a queer youth space would be somewhere old queers offer in exchange for a blowjob from a confused Iowa farm boy they met at cal Anderson at 2am.

Or three bathrooms, men's, women's and others?

" Now the real work begins!"

ie. get more gub'ment money for all those underprivileged' homo-shek-shal designers?

Or do u mean blowjobs for old queers in Cal Anderson at 2am?

Ya I was all for this when I first moved to the city now I'm 21 and can go the bars like everybody else. Way to take forever activist douchebags. Thanks for getting this started AFTER I TURN 21. stupid fags

Performance space?

Show tunes!

So being basically is handy spot for drunk middle aged queers hunting for a young, confused bucks fresh in from Kansas City; this new space is what, a training ground? Teach the kids how to put on rubbers after free basing meth with well off interior designers on the prowl?

Or will they teach them the joys of gay marriage, monogamy, settling down, joining the PTA and bitching about your property taxes like the rest of us?

First and foremost I'm not here to represent QYS in anyway, but from my experience organizing with them I've learned they're all hard-working, queer identified youth and/or allies. If anyone who is making negative comments actually became invested in their campaign, you'd know this. As for all the smack talking:

pox - youth is a fluid term. Turning 18 or 21 doesn't magically change everything for everyone. Additionally, age and the legal restrictions attracted to it vary not only from country to country, but can also change from state to state. The only reason we assign the term "adult" to those over 18 or 21 are because they come with additional legal privileges.

Max - A bathroom and a gender neutral bathroom are two different things. Gender neutral bathrooms are comfortable spaces for everyone to use regardless of whether someone identifies as male, female, both, or neither. Have you ever looked at how specific government grant funding is? The funding can only be used for the specific tasks it lists as approved. If QYS COULD use the funding to build a gender neutral bathroom, then they WOULD.

Chris - That sounds like a great conversation to have with an actual QYS Rep. Why not trying sending them and email to ask them some of those questions? I'm sure they'll have some really great answers to those questions. Criticism without further investigation does nothing to improve circumstances. Since you seem like you care so much, perhaps you could be an ally to the cause.

10 - I'm sure you would love it if bathrooms were designated with identities you don't claim and then a third said "Other". I'm sure it would feel really great if you had to go in the door that said "Other" all the time. Having a gender neutral bathroom makes the space inclusive to all queer youth and their allies, regardless of their gender identity.

YakHerder - the "real work" started in 2010. Just because the physical space is opening NOW does not discount the work that these youth have been doing for the past couple years. Grant applications, community events, educational workshops, etc. are not a piece of cake to organize. Give credit where credit is due!

Jon21 - There is a lot of work that goes into creating a space, especially one that is as inclusive as the youth center will be. Your frustration just proves that the space is still necessary.

Fantastic Job QYS, you're all a bunch of awesome queers! Much love for all that you do!

I AM ENTITLED TO HAVE YOUR PROJECT READY AND ON TIME AT MY DEMAND DAMMIT! I AM THE STATE!

If y'all want honest and factual reporting about QYS, check out this article.
http://washingtonbus.org/blog/queer-yout…

"s. Gender neutral bathrooms are comfortable spaces for everyone to use regardless of whether someone identifies as male, female, both, or neither."

Neither? What, like my dog after we cut his balls off?

Gender neutral toilet? Is that what a bidet is used for?

" Having a gender neutral bathroom makes the space inclusive to all queer youth and their allies, regardless of their gender identity."

What if I identify as a cat, do I get a litter box or will I be oppressed and made to use a squat toilet?

@23 I think they're talking about a litter box.

@ 21 Because the Lambert House mainly provides emergency services instead of prevention/education programming