Cyndi Lauper: LGBTQ Advocate helping homeless LGBT youth!

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She's so FABULOUSLY UNUSUAL: Cyndi Lauper on helping homeless LGBT youth: “My commitment to doing what I can is just beginning”

Cyndi Lauper is a tremendous talent who always gives 150 percent in her concerts.

 

But Cyndi is so much more than a big music star, she is a woman who gives a damn about the LGBT community and has committed herself to helping out the youth who have been made homeless by cold-hearted parents who can’t deal.

 

“As a mother, I could never imagine throwing my kid away for any reason, let alone over something like their sexual orientation or gender identity,” Lauper wrote in a Huffington Post column this week. “It would be like ripping out a piece of my very own soul. For far too long, dogma and fear have torn apart too many families. It is a time when the heart must lead the way when your child shares this personal and life-changing moment with you.”
Cyndi points out that 20-40 percent of homeless youth identify as gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender while only 3-5 percent of the general population does the same.

 

She has this advice for parents: “If you are a parent and you have a child who is gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender or just questioning, or whom you think might be, the most important thing you can do is let them know that you love them first and foremost. Do not let fear and long-held beliefs interfere with the most important relationship you will have in your life. Lead with your heart and with the love that you have for your child. Just a little bit of acceptance can make a huge difference, and that little bit will grow over time.”

Cyndi has joined with the West End Intergenerational Residence in New York City to open the True Colors Residence in Harlem. It is the first permanent housing facility in New York state specifically for gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender youth ages 18 to 24. This low-income housing building will provide 30 young people with a permanent roof over their heads and supportive services as they go after the future they have been dreaming about and deserve.

 

She also started the Give a Damn Campaign last year in part to educate straight people about this issue and to help gay and transgender people use the information to spread the message.

 

Thanks Cyndi for all you do!