Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Rainbow History Project Oral History Collection Description An account of the resource Eye-witness accounts of what we’ve seen and experienced provide a valuable resource to researchers and future generations to understand our past and how we arrived where we are today. Each interview in this collection has a narrator telling the story and a documenter guiding the process. Collected since the founding of the RHP, this collection is growing and is open to researchers. All interviews have been digitized and are described in the catalog; only some of them have transcripts available. None of the interviews stream online. To obtain access to an interview, you must request by contacting us directly, providing a brief description of your project and your research interests. Our email address is: info AT rainbowhistory DOT org One of our team will share the file from our Google Drive, and you can listen from home. Please be sure to have "Music Player for Google Drive" enabled on your machine to play the recording. www.driveplayer.com Table Of Contents A list of subunits of the resource. To see all interviews in the collection, click on "Items in the Rainbow History Project Oral History Collection" link below. Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Rainbow History Project Various narrators per oral history Oral History A resource containing historical information obtained in interviews with persons having firsthand knowledge. Interviewer The person(s) performing the interview. Jerry Wei Interviewee The person(s) being interviewed. Stephanie Kreps Transcription Any written text transcribed from a sound. No, transcript not available Original Format If the image is of an object, state the type of object, such as painting, sculpture, paper, photo, and additional data Yes, recording available, 00:55:02 (audio .m4a, 50.1 MB) Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Oral History Interview with Stephanie Kreps, 1950- Description An account of the resource Stephanie Kreps, co-founder of the Rainbow Youth Alliance (RYA), recounts the history of the LGBT+ teen support group Rainbow Youth Alliance. She also discusses her work and collaboration with PFLAG in Maryland, as well as her support for LGBT rights in Maryland with the gay civil rights organization, Equality Maryland. Abstract A summary of the resource. Stephanie Kreps co-founded the Rainbow Youth Alliance in 2006, after her son came out as gay. After attending meetings through PFLAG (former acronym standing for Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays) of Columbia, Stephanie decided to start a youth support group closer to home designed for teens aged 13-18. RYA, a program of her Unitarian Universality Congregation of Rockville, did not require parental permission to attend. She sought assistance from Lambda Legal on parental permission and liability issues. As RYA grew, it eventually started receiving consistent support from Brother, Help Thyself. She also discusses advertising the group at Montgomery County schools and the obstacles she encountered. Eventually, Parents and Friends of Ex-Gays and Gays (PFOX), an anti-gay group associated with Focus on the Family also started handing out flyers at schools, resulting in a lawsuit and ban on flyers in Montgomery County. She talked about RYA’s connections to GSA (Gay-Straight Alliance, now more commonly called Gender-Sexuality Alliance) clubs and the Gay, Lesbian & Straight Education Network’s (GLSEN) Day of Silence day of action. She discussed her work advocating for gay civil rights with Equality Maryland, especially through marriage equality lobby day where supports would go to Annapolis to lobby Maryland legislators. She talked about State Senator Nancy King of Maryland’s 39th District in Montgomery County, who refused to support same sex marriage for many years before changing her position. She discussed how, after the Civil Marriage Protection Act of 2012 was passed, opponents of same sex marriage launched Maryland Question 6, a referendum on the new bill that failed to reject the Act and same sex marriage. She also served for several years as secretary of the board of Metro DC PFLAG. Discussion also covered: Youth Pride DC, the Dignity Center, David Fishback, and Unitarianism. Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 10 May 2021 Access Rights Information about who can access the resource or an indication of its security status. Access Rights may include information regarding access or restrictions based on privacy, security, or other policies. The interview belongs to the Rainbow History Project. The RHP release form was used and all rights belong to RHP.