Q.U.E. P.A.S.=A.? (Queers Understanding Education, Power, And Solidarity =Advancement)

        In the Latina/o culture, homosexuality along with bisexuality, lesbianism and transgenderism, are nothing more than "taboo", a subject avoided when possible, but when faced kept in under a "shroud of secrecy."
A sub-program of the larger organization Bienestar, Q.U.E.P.A.S.A. is a youth outreach program to help, not only Latina/o youth, but anyone who finds themselves without a resource by which to ask questions and receive answers regarding gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, and most importantly, AIDS/HIV issues.  Bienestar was founded in 1989, with a goal to helping and educating the Latina/o Community on HIV/AIDS, when cases of infected Latina/os had reached substantial heights.  In 1993, Q.U.E.P.A.S.A., the youth oriented branch of Bienestar was established to serve the "emerging generation" of queer Latina/os. With the ever visible realization that communities, be it Latino, Caucasian, African, etc cannot depend on the present educational institutions to educate and support the growing number of queer youth on relevant issues of "queer life", Q.U.E.P.A.S.A. has made it their mission to do so.

        Although Q.U.E.P.A.S.A. was formed exclusively for Latina/o youth, their new website, www.members.aol.com/QuePasaLA/, welcomes all who are interested in learning about the escalating issues concerning the "gay community", but of course with an emphasis on the Latina/o aspects.  Full of color, and festive flare, the site features ancient Pre-Columbian artwork of Mesoamerica to give the site it's ethnic flavor.  The significance in the name, Q.U.E.P.A.S.A. (Queers Understanding Education, Power, And Solidarity = Advancement) carries in the English translation, "What's Up", because their goal is to tell youth exactly "what's up" so they can better protect themselves, as well as educate others of "queer identity."  To accomplish this task of gaining power and solidarity through education leading to advancement of one's self and the community, the site features internal programs that Q.U.E.P.A.S.A. offers on a weekly basis.  The programs range from artistic workshops to gatherings at coffeehouses, to most importantly, community outreaches/presentations. Q.U.E.P.A.S.A.'s site also does a wonderful job of presenting educational, publication, social, support, college, health, and fun links on their site, specifically those pertaining to the Latina/o Community.

        The drive of the organization's site is education, and the power that comes with knowledge.  The importance being so great, the locations that comes with knowledge.  The importance being so great, the locations of Q.U.E.P.A.S.A.'s community centers are made accessible to anyone who would like to help in the efforts of education and prevention.  As a community run and based effort, to achieve to the educating element of the program, the most critical efforts are the community outreaches, and the community presentations that Q.U.E.P.A.S.A. staff and volunteers facilitate.  The Community Outreaches are efforts to educate lesbian, gay and transgender youth in their native environments, such as nightclubs, bars, parties, schools, and other public events.  The outreach tables are set up with educational brochures, current events, knowledge tests, and sign up sheets.  The "Outreaches" endeavor to integrate Q.U.E.P.A.S.A. volunteers, as well as to link persons to other services provided by Q.U.E.P.A.S.A.

        Now another educational element, are the Community Presentations.  These presentations aim to be informative efforts to educate the general community about issues specifically related to lesbian, gay and
transgender youth.  Issues addressed in these presentations include, but are not limited to HIV transmission and prevention, homophobia, and cultural sensitivity.  These presentations are offered at numerous social events, which include health fairs, schools, colleges, churches, and other community based organizations.

        The attractive aspect of the program is that there is no political aspect to it, although some may argue that there is no relevance to an organization without a political agenda, but I beg to differ.  The fact that this organization dives into the community with the goal of educating youth, and providing services to them, that would not "normally" be offered to them due to the "cultural fear" of homosexuality, is enough of a goal to view this organization as a worthwhile investment of time and energy.  Their goal of wanting humans to be viewed as humans, without being "labeled" homosexual or homosexual may be in light of what Dennis Altman proposes "The End of the Homosexual," where "Gay liberation ..helps form a new consciousness. . Where we all possess a far greater potential for love and human relationship than social and cultural structures have allowed us to reveal." (Nardi 311).