It’s amazing to see how much we’ve already achieved! We have heard from so many people that they feel safer, supported and wanted thanks to GATE’s efforts, and it is vital that the trans community know that they’re not alone.
That’s why this week we’re focusing on showing up, which means showing your support for trans people and reminding them that we will fight for them. It is an incredibly difficult time for the trans community, and there’s so many ways we can help.
We’re hosting another day of action today (6th February) for people to engage with challenges from this theme via social media! Look out for our stories with ways to participate.
Check out the Show Up page for the full list of challenges, but here are a few we want to highlight:
100 Promise badges turned upside down
Show that you disagree with Girlguiding’s decision by turning your Promise badge upside down. If anyone asks you why, tell them you are showing your support for the trans community and opposing this dreadful decision. Make sure to send us a photo!
You can also buy one of our pin badges to add to your badge tab to show support - our team have been busy this week packing and sending orders! The GATE woven badges and pins as well as our risk assessment badges all finally arrived this week which was very exciting, and we are very grateful to our queen of money and merch, Bethan, who has spent hours and hours prepping orders and answering emails. Our 100 for 100 badges are expected next week and the envelopes and boxes are already waiting and ready to go as soon as they arrive. If your order hasn’t been shipped yet, you can still add extra items for no extra shipping cost! Just send us an email first to check. Hopefully you’re all as excited as we are to be receiving your badges!
Get creative at home or with your unit
There are loads of crafty and arty ways to show your support, including drawings, paintings, collages, self portraits, friendship bracelets, sticker designs, crocheted granny squares, quilt squares, paper chains, painted rocks, bookmarks, protest signs and more. Check out our craftivism page for tutorials, including how to make your own GATE necker!
Craftivism is a hugely impactful method of making change, both by raising awareness of the issue and because you are creating a physical reminder of the fight, forming a lasting memory of our experience, which is hard to ignore. Some great examples from other causes include the AIDS Memorial Quilt, the National Covid Memorial Wall, the ceramic remembrance poppies at the Tower of London or Suffragette lapel pins. The Good Law Project have just launched their Trans Unity Quilt project, made up of lots of individual panels which will be sewn together to create a trans flag more than 50m long. “This project will culminate by parading the quilt through London, as a trans takeover of our streets and an unavoidable and unapologetic representation of the power, beauty and diversity of our community. This will take place as part of London Trans+ Pride!” Support them through donations on their website, or follow @transunityquilt on social media to keep up to date. We’re also hoping to have our own GATE panel decorated in Belfast this month!
This also ties into the Girlguiding programme well, especially for Make Change Stage 3 & 4, and the Guides have a Craftivism interest badge - or you can check out the Creating My Flag activity from Unlocking the GATE, which ties into Reflect Stage 2. Get out your art supplies and get crafty!
100 people wearing trans colours
Send us a photo of you wearing pink, white and blue and be counted towards our challenge! This is just one example of all the quick and simple ways you can support our cause that collectively turns into real impact. We also want to make up a trans flag with 100 people, so show up in your favourite pink, white or blue top and we will edit everyone together!
There are so many other ways to show up, with over 50 challenges under this theme. See how many you can take part in - can you beat our Comms and Events & Youth Engagement leads, who have completed over 20 challenges so far? Check out the pictures below to see some examples of what people have been up to, including the origami star trans flag these two made!
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