Chroma trust to empower LGBT+ youth
A NEW charitable trust in Invercargill hopes to empower Southland youth who identify with the LGBT+ community, and to work towards a ‘‘labelless’’ future for the region.
Chroma Charitable Trust chair David SarShalom Abadi, who moved to Invercargill two years ago with his partner, said the group was formed when he recognised a lack of support for LGBT+ youth in the city.
‘‘We were surprised that with how progressive New Zealand’s society is about LGBT issues, that there was nothing here other than a Facebook group and some chats that weren’t very active,’’ he said.
With help from friends, Mr SarShalom Abadi had met through a local support group, he formed the idea for a group which would coordinate LGBT+ support groups, and serve as a platform to socialise with the community.
The trustees, who held their first meeting on Thursday, agreed the group should serve as a ‘‘bonding experience’’, rather than a label that separates them from the community.
‘‘The future will hopefully be labelless. It is a struggle getting there, but I think this is a good step in that direction,’’ Mr SarShalom Abadi said.
A focus on health and wellbeing was also important for him, while trustee Ari Edgecombe said the group would provide ‘‘active visibility’’ in the community.
The group visited Invercargill school Aurora College last week to address LGBT+ issues with high school pupils, and the reaction from pupils highlighted the need for such action, Mr Edgecombe said.
‘‘They were attentive, they were curious, they were very engaged. If I look back in that perspective, I would have liked to have sat in that room, at that age, and seen myself and the others there,’’ he said.
Chroma will meet for the second time in September where they will discuss future school visits and community events.