Summer of Sass: Where LGBTQ youth find summer jobs, safe haven – Wicked Local

Youthrelocatefrom intolerant situations for summer of work, play, community

Summer of Sass participant Stacy Starr, 21, sings at Spiritus Pizza in Provincetown, Mass.

Stacy Starr, 21, sings Ed Sheerans The A Team outside of Spiritus Pizza in Provincetown, Massachusetts. Starr is in the Summer of Sass program.

Wicked Local

PROVINCETOWN "It gets better."

The decade-old messageaims topreventsuicide among LGBTQyouthby havingadults who have been on the receivingside ofbullyingandstigmatell stories of a beautiful and hopeful life ahead.

The Summer of Sass work program is meant to take the message one step further.

It'swhat "better" looks like,founder Kristen Becker said.

Stacy Starrcalmlystrumsherukulele while sitting on thestoopofSpiritus Pizza. It's been just a few weeks since she arrived atthe LGBTQ and artists "safe haven,"known asProvincetown, Massachusetts.

In between songs, people walkingby stopto chat, complimentingher performance.

"I found my confidence, the21-year-oldsaid.

Starr, wearing silver star-shaped earringsand pink star sunglasses, has let the transphobiashesbeen met with throughout her young life movepast her.

People really hate trans people, Starr said.Shewas nearly jumped on the street and chased down by a car when she moved to Buffalo, New York. She moved to Buffalo after her parents kicked her out of thehouse, she said.

Growing up in Farmville, Virginia, "Ispent so much time worrying about a lot of the things I wasnt allowed to do," she said.

The Summer of Sassprogram invites LGBTQ young adults, usually between the agesof18 to 20,torelocatefrom oppressive areas in the United States for a summer of work and play, community and independence.

Another "sasser," 18-year-old EthanJackson, grew up in a religious environment in Defiance, Ohio. His first night in Provincetown, he had the realizationhehadnever seen two people of the same sex hold hands in public.

Ive seen that in movies,pictures and stuff,but never in person.Butyou see that everyday around here. That is the norm. Its great,Jacksonsaidbefore smiling.Even now, Im seeingsomeone,and we walked down the street holding hands.

Leaving Spiritus Pizza after a long workday at Gale Force Bikes, Jackson stops to compliment a street performer outside, saying that he appreciates when he sees others chase their dreams.

Jackson himself likes to sketch and sing. He's thinking about being a storyteller and possibly going to college.

Becker, a comedian,founded the programin 2016, following her 20thhigh school reunionin Shreveport, Louisiana.

While there, she read a story in the local paper about a gay teenager who had to graduate high school early because he was bullied so much.

I was just like 20 years have gone by and its still the same thing. That was my motivation for starting the program, she said.

When Becker left Louisiana herself to pursue acomedy career, she realized that the worldwas notloaded with shame everywhere and that there were places "queer people can be themselves.

The teenager she read aboutin the newspaper,TeddyLowery, became the first participant of the program the following summer.

"Everyone told me I was crazy, and I didnt know what I was doing, and they were 100% correct, Becker said.

Despite her doubts,she pushed on: raising money for housingand travel, connecting withactivistorganizationsin the Southand talking with local businesses that often face worker shortages during the busy summer season.

This year marks the fourthSummer of Sass group to come to town. Groups usually range from three to six participants.Noone came last year due to the COVID-19 virus threat.

Each season, Beckercatersthe programs to the needs of the youthparticipating, learning as she goes, she said.Weekly group outings will include anything fromgoing on a whale watch to counseling.

In thefirst few years of the program, Provincetown Compacta local non-profit working to advance the year-round communitywas the program's fiscal sponsor. In 2020, the program became its own registered non-profit with a board of directors.

Participants often learn about the program from connections Becker has made with advocacy organizations throughout the South. Youth across the countrycan also apply on the Summer of Sass website. Becker hasonly ever had to turn two people away because there wasn't enoughspace, she said.

"Normally, they come to me when I need them," she said. "I always seem to have enough. I don't have to work too hard for that part because there's an abundance of kids living in bad areas for being gay."

Participantsin the program pay rent weekly, but its subsidized, Beckersaid.

I make up the difference for what a youngqueercan afford and what it costs to be here, she said. So,there is a sense of responsibility and I think thats really important. Its not a free ride.

About twenty years ago, Provincetown attracted many young queer people, Becker said.But with a rising real estate market, it has become a lot less feasible for a group of queer friends to rent a place for the summer, she said.

Its very clear that were getting priced out, she said.Local businesseslike Sals Place restaurant, Provincetown Brewing Company andGreg SalvatoriGalleryhave been a big help with fundraising efforts, she said.

'Sass'growth

We have a huge social media campaign were going to launch this summer, she said.

The number one priority is obtaining a permanent house, Becker said. That way agroup of eight to ten peoplecan come to town and some who would stay year-round.

Ideally,the nonprofitcould raise $1 million for a town propertythat can bebought and paid off, Becker said.

"I don't know how to sustain this, truthfully, without it," she said.

It has been rewarding to see the growth of the program's participants throughout the years, Becker said. A group ofsassers, now a few years older,recently moved to New Orleans together. Anotherfirst-yearparticipant, KhloeMitchell, got a nursing certificate and is a performer in town.

It's been a lot of growth. They really do thrive, Becker said.

The program opens up LGBTQ youth to see their own potential, wherethere's a whole community of queer peopleliving in million dollar houses, Becker said.

Its a visibility theyve never had before," she said. "It changes what you believe about yourself and it changes what everyone has told you about yourself."

For Jackson, sitting at an outside table at Spiritus Pizza, he compares the isolation he felt as one of the onlyqueer people in his Ohio hometownto the freedom he feels now.

Its refreshing to know theres a whole community of us," Jackson said. While moving to somewhere he's never been before was frightening and took abig leap of faith, it was necessary for his personal growth, he said.

Ive also learnedtonot be soafraid," Jackson said.

Outside the popular pizza shop, Starr smiles beforesingingher original song entitled "Tripped Wire." The song reflectswhatshe's learned as she's become a young adult.

Im living on a tripped wire. Im walking on a line. I cannot be defined for who I am. Im not a good actress. I do not know my lines," she sings. "I do not tell the lies that you want to hear,wannahear. Cause if we live on eggshells, can we ever be ourselves?Were cracking from the pressures of the lectures forced on us.

INFORMATION

Learn more about Summer of Sass:https://www.summerofsass.org.

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Summer of Sass: Where LGBTQ youth find summer jobs, safe haven - Wicked Local