Current offerings

...and many more offerings in the works

Ground rules for live groups

• Respect confidentiality and boundaries. Youth participants should not share personal contact info or details such as last name, name of school, or other identifying details. Participants 13+ may choose to share their public websites such as a YouTube channel or an art blog, provided their adults are aware of this and the site is intended for public consumption, but may not share personal social media with identifying details. Youth who wish to get in contact with one another should have their adults reach out. Participants who may encounter one another in other settings should not reveal information shared in Alphabet Alliance groups (including names and pronouns should a peer be using different ones in a different spaces).

• Aim to keep most discussion content G or PG rated, including in adult spaces for everyone's comfort. Mindful mentions of media with ratings beyond or equivalent real-life situations this are permitted, provided details are not included; it is normative for high-school students to read and discuss novels with mature themes, but this needs to be done with consent, content warnings, and tact. Songs that are shared live in groups need to be clean versions. Artwork or other media should be free of gratutious gore or upsetting content.

• We are not a therapy space and do not provide mental health or other medical advice in this space. Health discussions of a general nature around topics such as sleep schedules, study skills, general information around medical gender transition, and general discussion around disability and neurodiversity are appropriate. Members should refrain from excessive personal sharing about medications or medical procedures. Discussion of personal disability identities is of course welcome and encouraged, but discussions cannot veer into medical advice or sensitive topics. Younger participants might want to work with their adults to practice language they can use to advocate for accommodation needs without sharing excessive personal details. 

• Detailed discussion of sensitive topics (medical issues, abuse, trauma, harm to self or others...) either in one's personal life, in media, or in the broader society is not appropriate. Members can seek support around sensitive issues by stating for instance that someone they are discussing did harm to their family in the past without giving details, stating they witnessed someone having a medical issue and found this worrisome, and so forth. We do not repeat hate speech or hate rhetoric during discussions of marginalization. 

• Our groups tend to be largely made up of neurodivergent members, and as such we appreciate many types of social skills. That being said, we do ask that group members of all neurotypes need to respect the group leader and members when asked to move on from a topic or when reminded of ground rules. It is important to keep spaces welcoming, and when members are not able to self-regulate enough to respect boundaries and ground rules, this can be upsetting to other members. Members who disagree with a decision by the group leader are encouraged to message the leader to discuss at another time.

• We are a social justice space! We ask that members consider that the impact of a particular behavior matters more than the intent. We understand that people are in different places with their learning regarding identity topics, and we are very much a place to ask respectful questions in good faith. However, we need to be careful we are not policing others' language choices or debating who is allowed to express a particular identity. We ask everyone to act in good faith. We ask members to remember that those with identities different from ours are not obligated to educate us unless they choose, and to try to look up unfamiliar terms on our own or consider whether, for instance, we can listen and relate to someone's sharing regarding family dynamics at a cultural holiday event without needing to ask them to explain the holiday.