If TPR could give out an award for Best New Non-Profit, this would be it. I never got to go to any away camp as a kid, and you can bet your pink and brown asses my parents would not have sent me to a gay camp. This volunteer-run camp for trans youth, Camp Aranu’tiq, has a heart of gender-neutral gold, and I can only imagine the amount of struggle, defensive conversation and explanation that the organizers have gone through just to get to this point. Well, queer-kudos to the coolest bunch of organized queers I have seen in a long time! From the Aranu’tiq website:
“Our mission is to provide transgender and gender-variant youth with a safe, fun, and unique camp experience during which they are able to express gender however they are comfortable and connect with others in similar situations.
Camp Aranu’tiq is a non-profit, volunteer-run organization. It was born out of the idea that transgender and gender-variant youth needed a safe place to relate to others like them, away from home, in a beautiful rural setting where they can concentrate on what every camper loves: having fun.
Due to the sensitive nature of our program, the exact location of Aranu’tiq can be obtained by interested parents, volunteers, and campers by contacting us.”
