Congratulations to our graduating Youth Voices – Class of 2022!
Youth Voices is an annual cohort of exceptional young people ages 13-18 who team up with our organization to offer their unique stories and words of advice to other LGBTQ+ youth around the globe. They are students, artists, and activists who are working to change their communities for the better and who have a passion for empowering their community of LGBTQ+ peers with their insights and observations.
This year’s cohort, Class of 2022, has officially come to an end. It is a bittersweet moment as we send off this group of incredible young people to do bigger and brighter things! But before we do, we’d like to take a moment to celebrate some of the powerful, creative, and inspiring things that they have accomplished with us this year.
Major Projects
- River of Life – The Youth Voices took a storytelling workshop, “River of Life”, where they learned how to craft their story to affect positive change for LGBTQ+ youth like themselves. They later recorded these beautiful stories which were used in workshops and conferences; and soon, many of them will be on our social channels reaching thousands of LGBTQ+ youth!
- imi Guide – They supported the Milk Collaborative in creating a mental health tool for LGBTQ+ youth like themselves. They contributed to the collections of stories, provided feedback, participated in focus groups, and so much more.
- Zines – They started our (now on-going) Youth Voice Zine collection featuring their original art, poetry, photography, stories, thought-pieces, and more.
- OTIS Comic Book Heroes – They were interviewed by a class of art students from OTIS College so that the artists could create a comic book inspired by the Youth Voices, their story, and elements of their personalities!
- Feedback – They provided feedback on It Gets Better content, educational materials, strategic planning efforts, and more.

and Ben (they/them) share their “River of Life” story.
Speaking Out
The Youth Voices spoke out on important and relevant issues like…

in Los Angeles, CA for National Coming Out Day.
Interviews
The Youth Voices participated in powerful and uplifting interviews about…
- “What do you wish your younger self would have known?” with GenZine
- Coming Out Resources with Clean & Clear
- Book bans with USA Today
- Pronouns with Seventeen
- Personal stories with Project Contrast
- Anti-trans legislation with Freeform
- Being a Youth Voice with Chapstick
- The power of youth with Oribe
- and more.

Livestreams
The Youth Voices participated in empowering and engaging live-streamed discussions like…
- Hispanic Heritage Month Twitter Live
- IG Live with Teen Vogue, Zaya Wade, and Amy Schneider
- Facebook Q&A with Jojo Siwa
- IG Live with Blair Imani
- Chosen Family Twitch Stream
- Transgender Day of Visibility Twitch Stream
- Digital Pride – Body Positivity / Acceptance & the LGBTQ+ Space
- Digital Pride – LGBTQ+ Intersectionality, Music, & Media
- Digital Pride – LGBTQ+ Visibility on Television with “Queer as Folk”
- Digital Pride – Mental Health with Hopelab
- Vodcast Interview

Conferences
The Youth Voices spoke on panels and provided video content for workshops and conferences like…
- Teach for America
- SXSW EDU
- ILGA World Conference

These 13 incredible young people all have accomplished so much this year and touched the lives of so many LGBTQ+ youth around the globe. We are so proud of each and every one of them, and the incredible growth, passion, dedication, creativity, and power that came from this cohort and their year together.
Alejandro Isabella, Hammy, Jace, Uma, Zach, Andrea, Ben, Chloe, Elliot, Hailey, Kiki, Laynie, and Sasha… Congratulations on Graduating Youth Voices, Class of 2022!
Learn more about the Youth Voices program.