State of Maine-Sponsored 2008 Boys to Men Conference to hold 'Queer' Youth Workshop

The Portland, Maine-based Boys to Men organization has recently publicized a workshop entitled "Queer, Questioning, Quiet: Developing Gender Identity & Male Sexual Orientation" for their upcoming 2008 annual conference.  Scheduled for 10:00 a.m. on Tuesday, May 13 at the Abromson Community Education Center at the University of Southern Maine, the presentation will feature speakers by the homosexual Proud Rainbow Youth for Southern Maine (PRYSM) group.

According to its 2008 Conference website, Boys to Men "is targeted primarily to middle and high school boys and their adult male mentors."  The workshop is described as having "speakers from the Maine SpeakOut Project and PRYSM [who] will discuss their own coming-out experiences and use these as a springboard for exploring LGBT [Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgendered] issues and resources for youth in Southern Maine."

Friends and Lovers Workshop, 2005

Additionally, the Maine boys conference is also holding a workshop entitled "Real Life. Real Talk. Sex in the Movies" during the same morning session.  This sex education workshop for young boys is being led by Lauren Grousd and Jason Barriault of Planned Parenthood of Northern New England. 

Under the Boys to Men "core value" of "gender justice," they state: "Traditional media and cultural representations of masculinity and femininity are too narrowly defined and contribute to destructive and damaging behavior towards individuals of all genders and ages.  We are committed to eliminating the inequalities and institutional injustices that result from these traditional media and cultural representations of masculinity."

The Boys to Men RSVP (Reducing Sexism and Violence Program) project "teaches young men and young women to work together to enhance school climate by standing up against...gender stereotyping, homophobia and intolerance of difference.  RSVP student leader graduates will be certified to teach media literacy and violence prevention to students in middle schools, elementary schools and other community settings."

In describing their annual Boys to Men conference, they state it "offer[s] boys a chance to...recognize and celebrate the many ways of being male."

"On every level, each Boys to Men conference has been an unequivocal and overwhelming success. Between 250 and 450 boys and their fathers or mentors have attended each Boys to Men conference. The conference is so unique, effective and one-of-a-kind that schools from all over the state – even as far away as Calais – have been sending buses of kids to attend."

Among the Boys to Men Board of Directors members are Chuck Morrison, Sexuality Educator for the Portland Public Schools, Cathy Plourde, Executive Director, Add Verb Productions, and Bill Gregory, Minister, United Church of Christ (Retired).

The 2008 Boys to Men Conference sponsors and supporters are: Healthy Maine Partnerships, the Maine Medical Center, Dead River Company, Portland Press Herald/Maine Sunday Telegram, Whole Foods Market, The United Way of Greater Portland, The [Southern Maine] Forecaster, The Kjeldgaard Foundation, Maine Medical Center's Department of Psychiatry/Spring Harbor Hospital, Maine Office of Substance Abuse, Muskie School of Public Service, Youth Alternatives.

The conference offers reduced registration fees for young boys ($12).  Adults are asked to pay $15 to register.

Information about Boys to Men and its annual conference is available at 565 Congress Street, Suite 206A, Portland, ME 04101, (207) 774-9994, www.boysconference.org, www.boystomen.info, Layne Gregory, Executive Director, boystomen@maine.rr.com, Jeff Morill, Program Coordinator, jeffb2m@maine.rr.com, and Fleur Hopper, Admistrative Coordinator, fleurb2m@maine.rr.com.

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