ABSTRACT
This chapter traces the ally movement since the 1960s across Australian and North American educational institutions, thereby highlighting Gay-Straight Alliances, the Safe Schools Coalition and Allied Networks. Drawing on an intersectional approach, whereby gender and sexuality collide with factors such as socioeconomic and sociocultural background, race, age, etc., knowledge is conveyed about the allied movement’s synergies with Black Panthers, women’s liberation, trans activism and historical events, such as Stonewall. In North American schools, despite opposition from conservative forces, the LGBTQI+ ally landscape has been predominantly occupied by student-led Gay-Straight Alliances (also referred to as Gender and Sexuality Alliances) and one-off events, such as the Transgender Day of Remembrance, Day of Pink and the National Coming Out Day. Comparatively, in Australian schools, despite political opposition, organizations such as the Safe Schools Coalition, originally funded by the Commonwealth Government, have been largely responsible for promoting LGBTQI+ human rights through support services and programs.
