COLAGE
COLAGE is an organization created in 1990 by the children of several lesbian and gay parents and guardians who felt a need for support.
COLAGE is run and operated by people of all ages who have LGBTQ parents or guardians. Older COLAGErs mentor younger members, preparing them for challenges that children may face having queer parents. Every summer COLAGE comes to Family Pride's annual Family Week in Provincetown on Cape Cod. There, hundreds of families attend COLAGE meetings and workshops.
COLAGE is currently a virtual organization and has a small paid staff. The national program director is Jordan Wilson.
History
COLAGE is the first organization of its kind and was originally called Just for Us. Just for Us began as a newsletter of the main six members of COLAGE. Later, six other chapters around the United States adopted that name. The ancestry of COLAGE can be tracked to an annual conference that is sponsored each year by Gay and Lesbian Parents Coalition International. In 1992, the group met for three days, outside of its annual meeting, to compose a mission statement and long-term goals. Amity Buxton represented the Straight Spouse Network, which has close relations with the Family Pride Coalition, at the conference and gave presentations for the GLPCI/FPC concerning her heading of the Task Force for children through PFLAG. Her presentation proved successful in contributing to the origins of COLAGE.In 1995, COLAGE opened a volunteer-run national office in San Francisco. This office operated for the primary purpose of providing "support, research, media, and advocacy" for over 500 families on a mailing list of children with LGBT parents. Beginning in 1996, COLAGE included children of transgender parents and designed specific resources not available anywhere else.
In 1997, the organization had their first director on payroll with a minuscule budget. The director, along with a determined team of youth-led volunteer committees, was able to commence a nationwide campaign that would allow them to hire another staff member in 1999.
Advocacy
In the United States, there are 6 million children who have at least queer parent or guardian, and within these values anywhere from one to nine million children are currently being raised in households with two or more queer parents or guardians. Children within these households face several challenges and the ability to cope with their situation can often be overwhelming. COLAGE serves these children in several ways with peer support and community-building.The process for children to become comfortable with their lifestyle is often disrupted by outside influences such as "negative portrayals, misinformation, and the constant public debate about LGBT rights." Another purpose of COLAGE is addressing the burden of a lack of benefits or protections for LGBT families with children. COLAGE also opposes negative media concerning mental health impacts to children of LGBT parents and guardians.