Dear Allie Column Archives | Focus Middle Tennessee

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Ask Allie: Finding Trans Youth Role Models

by Sarah Rutledge Fischer Dear Allie, Last November, watching Kamala Harris take the stage as the first someone-who-looks-like- me to be elected Vice President of the United States, I found…

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3 min
213

Dear Allie: Can You Safely Live with a No-Masker?

I’ve had the same housemates for years. We’ve been through it all—illness, breakups, job changes—and we’ve always been able to work things out. But I’m afraid Miss ‘Rona might be our downfall.

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3 min
347

Ask Allie: We Must All DO. BE. ACT. BETTER

To fail to actively include BIPOC (Black and Indigenous People of Color) in the conversation about LGBTQ+ issues is to perpetuate a culture that discounts not only the trauma and injuries of BIPOC in this country, but also their voices, accomplishments, and basic humanity.

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426

Dear Allie: When Your Family Member Needs Financial Help

Before you offer your brother financial assistance, take an honest look at your relationship. If you can, ask for perspective from someone who knows you both and won’t sugar coat things. A financial exchange between two people can change the balance of power in their relationship, and if power is already an issue, the results can be explosive.

Individual in peach color shirt with black sunglasses and backpack slung over right shoulder standing against a white background

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3 min
492

Ask Allie: LGBT+? You Deserve Nurturing Self-Care

It is a hard gig to be a thinking, caring LGBTQ+ person in this world. It is even harder if you feel as if everyone—your family and your society—treats you as if you are less worthy of basic human dignity than others.

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1.4K

Domestic Partner Violence: Is Your Safety Plan Ready?

I’m a 23-year-old transman married to a 30-year-old woman. I adore her, but I am such a disappointment to her. It has to do with my family. My family lives across the country and doesn’t know that I am trans. They think I’m a lesbian. The thing is, they are fairly supportive about that, but they’ve made statements about transfolks . . . I just can’t tell them. Not yet...

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4 min
780

Ask Allie: Handling a Loved One’s Dementia

Not answering questions truthfully may be a less stressful response for both LGBT+ adult children and their affected parents

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5 min
1K

Ask Allie: Starting a Gay-Straight Alliance: What the law Supports

Dear Allie, I have a friend at a different school that has a Gay-Straight Alliance, and they get to do so much interesting stuff. I want to start one at my school, but the administration seems pretty conservative. I’m not sure it’s even allowed. Where do I start? Do I have the right to a GSA?

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3 min
955

Ask Allie: Quiet Your Negative Self Talk

Dear Allie, I have this constant voice in my head telling me how awful I am. If I make one choice, the voice shrieks at me for being a total queen. If I make the other choice, it tells me I'm a fraud. There is no winning. I know the voice comes from my critical homophobic upbringing. I keep trying to ignore it, but it just keeps getting louder. I'm exhausted. Help.

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3 min
903

Ask Allie: Making Office Space LGBT+ Welcoming

Dear Allie, I’ve noticed that some of our new LGBT+ clients seem uncomfortable or anxious about entering an environment that screams old-world-values. What can I do to make our office a more welcoming and supportive space?

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