ABSTRACT
Jason was referred to the foster care system when he was just 11 years old. Jason's referral was unique because unlike most other child welfare cases, the state did not come in and take Jason away from his biological family. This chapter provides further insight into the experiences of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and questioning (LGBTQ) youth who come into contact with the child welfare system. It seeks to provide some basic terminology and language for child welfare professionals and caretakers to possess to enhance and strengthen their interactions with LGBTQ youth. Sexual orientation is the desire for intimate emotional and/or physical relationships with another person. The terms heterosexual and homosexual were historically used in referring to an individual's sexual orientation; however, those terms are largely discouraged because they reduce a youth's identity to purely sexual terms. A person's gender identity can be viewed as their internal sense of being masculine or feminine.
