In the early 2010s, queer and trans young people, supported by GSA Network and Transgender Law Center, advocated and lobbied across state capitols to pass various queer and trans-centered bills, including the School Success and Opportunity Act and the FAIR Education Act. Activists shared their stories and motivated their audience into action, but it also became clear that trans youth media advocates needed more support on many levels that are impacted by media work. 

As a result, the first Gender Justice Leadership Program, TRUTH, launched in 2015 as a joint program of Transgender Law Center and GSA Network. The inspiration for TRUTH came from the experiences of trans young people and their families who shared their stories with local, state, and national media as part of various campaigns to change policies in their communities. These young people often succeeded in changing hearts and minds, but they didn’t always have the resources they needed to stay safe, healthy, and supported in the aftermath of sharing their stories.

TRUTH, informed by the lessons of those campaigns, sought to:

1. Build public empathy and understanding around trans youth issues by providing guidance and a platform for youth and families to share their stories effectively and authentically
2. Create infrastructure for transgender and gender nonconforming youth to support each other, connect, and strategize about how to use media and storytelling as a tool for liberation

The program launched with five videos from transgender young people and families, a storytelling toolkit guiding young people through effective storytelling for creating change, and a toolkit with best practices for journalists covering trans youth issues. Over the following year, National TRUTH Organizer Juniperangelica Cordova-Goff built out a formal structure through the TRUTH youth councils to ensure transgender and gender nonconforming young people lead the work of the program. The California TRUTH Council launched in August 2015, the National TRUTH Council launched in June 2016 at the Allied Media Conference, and the Southern TRUTH Council launched in June 2017 at the Queer Youth Leading the South (QYLTS) camp. 

The program marked November 17, 2016, the Friday before Trans Day of Remembrance, as TRUTH’s first GSA Day 4 Gender Justice with the theme: What does Gender Justice mean to you? TRUTH’s second GSA Day for Gender Justice invited trans and nonbinary youth to join in conversation to affirm what #MyTransBodyIs in 2017.

In 2018, TRUTH reorganized the youth council structure and created what we see today, one large National Trans Youth Council. Within the council, regions met as committees but worked as one team. National TRUTH council members from the Midwest and Northeast regions gathered in Chicago, IL to experience community building, political storytelling workshops, and community service. At the same time, Western and Southwestern TRUTH council members gathered in Oakland, CA for a few days of community building, political education, and media training. The program was also recognized by the International Court Council for the Fredd E. Tree Spirit of Stonewall Award.

By the end of 2018, the TRUTH leadership council launched the 9 point platform on the third annual GSA Day 4 Gender Justice which calls into action an intersectional movement for justice and a future where trans youth can survive and thrive. Youth Leaders also published a zine about Trans Day of Remembrance, highlighting how trans individuals have experienced both trauma and healing as well as the lessons they learned about mourning our dead and building safe spaces. 

In 2019, TRUTH council members presented at Creating Change about storytelling as a powerful tool for social justice while Southeastern youth council members gathered in New Orleans to work on podcast skill building and healing justice. TRUTH’s 4th GSA Day for Gender Justice focused on the platform’s first point, trans youth self-determination, with hashtag campaigns like #TRUTHFeatures and #MyTransDestinyIs. 

The second Gender Justice Leadership Program, the Roses Program, began in 2020 and was created to address the specific needs of trans girls of color. It is a safe space for Black, Indigenous, and brown trans and nonbinary girls who wish to build community, center gender and racial justice, and engage in advocacy work. To welcome new members, staff created survival kit care packages that included wellness tools, school supplies, and more. In March, unprecedented times emerged with COVID-19 changing how we organized. TRUTH canceled all travel for the year and found ways to stay connected as we navigated and adapted to a new virtual world. TRUTH’s 5th GSA Day for Gender Justice centered on the platform’s second point of abolition.

The Roses Program continued its work into 2021 with workshops on storytelling held by Xelestiál Moreno-Luz. They focused on community video making, photography and memory, and graphic design and resistance centering the voices of Black, brown, and Indigenous trans girls. The program also featured an Instagram Live series called The Gurls Are Talking: Intergenerational Trans Girl Power with staff members Mulani Jackson and Gia Cordova. 

2021 was, unfortunately, a record-breaking year for anti-trans legislation with over 150 bills introduced from various representatives throughout the US. In response to this attack on trans youth, TRUTH created the No Pride Without Trans Youth zine and held an Instagram Live series called Can’t Stop, Won’t Stop! Both platforms featured trans and nonbinary youth exploring what people can do in solidarity with the community and how trans youth can empower themselves. The IG Live series followed four themes: No Pride Without Trans Youth, Black Trans Youth Power, Trans Joy 4 Liberation, and Show Up 4 Trans Youth. TRUTH also featured hashtag campaigns like #MyTransBodyIs and #LoveLetters4TransYouth to help combat the onslaught of negativity surrounding trans youth and trans bodies. GJLP also honored #GSADay4GJ centered on the platform’s third point of transformative justice.

Like 2021, 2022 began with an influx of anti-trans legislation. TRUTH and Roses began new councils, focusing on the fourth point of the platform centered around ending the cisgender heterosexual patriarchy. Youth and adult allies engaged in the Storytelling Workshop to review the current state of trans youth in the media, the need for authentic storytelling from youth leaders, the risks and benefits of personal storytelling, and a step-by-step guide for crafting an effective story. Water the Roses continued to be a community space for trans and gender nonconforming girls of color, and Roses also filmed their annual Intergenerational Gurl Talk video. A new program, the Trans Trust Funds, also began in collaboration with the Brown Boi Project to empower trans youth to establish a sustainable financial wellness practice. Participants focused on unpacking the messages they received from parents, caregivers, the media, etc. and developed strategies for creating ideal financial lives. 

2022 was also the launch of Devising Freedom, a GSA Network national strategy to create a vision for transgender, nonbinary, and gender nonconforming youth to blossom despite the persistent attacks on their bodies and identities. This strategy focuses on four key pillars: homecoming, truthtelling, spirit-sustaining, and stargayzing. Learn more about Devising Freedom here. To discuss this strategy, GSA Network and GJLP held General Assemblies throughout the year, a digital space to connect with youth and allies across the nation, get policy updates on anti-trans legislation, and learn how to take action.

As attacks on trans youth continued into 2023, GJLP, in collaboration with the Transgender Law Center, saw the need for joy in our community. To interrupt the regular doom and gloom of the legislative season, the Trans Joy Zine was created as an act of resistance. Transgender, nonbinary, and gender nonconforming youth from across the country submitted original creations that highlighted their joy including depictions of community, friends, gender euphoria, t4t love, and more. The annual No Pride Without Trans Youth Zine was also published, including conversations with trans youth leaders, art from trans youth, resources, and calls to action. 

2023 also brought about a new configuration of councils. Instead of holding separate spaces, the National TQ2S+ Council was formed so youth could connect with community members, engage in political action, create their own storytelling projects, and more. This council focused on the fifth point of the platform which calls for decolonization and reparations. Youth created a #GSADay4GJ zine focused on this theme filled with youth writings, art, and resources for GSA clubs. An additional zine was created for TDOR as well. Despite Roses becoming part of this council, they still held a separate Water the Roses space for trans and gender nonconforming girls of color. 

The second annual Trans Joy Zine launched in 2024 with a focus on Black Trans Joy. Black trans youth from across the country submitted creations highlighting their intersectional identities and the joy they experience including experiences with ballroom, music, dance, gender euphoria, and more. Joy was desperately needed, because it was at this time that Nex Benedict passed away. In response to this tragic event, GJLP put out a call for Love Letters to TQ2S+ youth and received over 150+ submissions filled with messages of love, hope, resilience, and care. 

The annual No Pride Without Trans Youth Zine was also published, as well as another Intergenerational Gurl Talk for TDOR. In collaboration with TLC, GJLP created the Water the Roots Zine about the courageous voices of Black trans elders and Black trans youth creating space and intergenerational dialogue about sustainability meant to empower trans youth, elders, and adults to voice ways that community and allies can create pathways to better sustainable practices. In September of 2024, GJLP decided to bring back TRUTH and members engaged in political education and storytelling. Together, youth created a zine for #GSADay4GJ, focusing on the sixth point of the platform calling for comprehensive education.