How to throw a virtual 'rainbow graduation' for LGBTQ seniors

Mashable is celebrating Pride Month by exploring the modern LGBTQ world, from the people who make up the community to the spaces where they congregate, both online and off.

Some LGBTQ youth have a bittersweet relationship with school. They may develop once-in-a-lifetime friendships but also feel the pain of being misgendered by a teacher or bullied by their peers.

Graduation can present its own set of unique concerns for students: Will their gender identity or chosen name be respected at the ceremony? Will they feel excluded at an event that's billed as a rite of passage for everyone? Will family members unfamiliar or disapproving of their gender identity or sexual orientation attend?

Such complexities are why a so-called rainbow graduation can be a powerful moment for LGBTQ youth.

The event celebrates LGBTQ seniors and is typically hosted and attended by a combination of their families, friends, or allies. A rainbow graduation is purposely designed to "reflect and honor" the students' identities, says a.t. furuya, youth programs manager for the LGBTQ youth advocacy organization GLSEN.

The coronavirus pandemic, however, has made in-person rainbow graduation events difficult or impossible, so GLSEN published a guide to putting on a virtual version.

There are few rules to holding a rainbow graduation, except to ensure the students being feted have autonomy over how they are celebrated and who attends.

GLSEN's nine-step guide focuses on forming a committee; picking a virtual platform (think Zoom, Google Meet, Portal); selecting a date; creating a planning committee; choosing an itinerary; sending invitations; designing a certificate (GLSEN offers its own template); confirming participants; and, rehearsing the ceremony. Though GLSEN recommends tapping your school's gender-sexuality alliance (GSA) to support organizing a rainbow graduation, anyone can take on planning duties, including parents, teachers, or the students themselves.

If your school's official graduation has already passed, there's no reason you can't also host a special ceremony for LGBTQ students. And if your rainbow graduation is just for you and a few friends, that's fine, says furuya.

"If you have 20 people sign up to go, everyone might not show up and that's OK," furuya says. "I don't think a bigger crowd or more people means more success."

GLSEN's suggested itinerary includes a welcome speech, senior speeches, brief thoughts from supportive adults in attendance, a performed song or poem, a video montage of the student participants at a younger age, and, of course, the correct pronunciation and pronouns of the students being celebrated.

When developing the programming, it's important to take into account any time limit set by the video conferencing software. Free versions of these programs often restrict users to an hour or less. To make the event more secure, furuya recommends making it private and requiring registration. (GLSEN also has a tipsheet on organizing virtual events regardless of the subject matter.)

Though virtual rainbow graduations aren't the same as in-person affairs, furuya says they can be particularly impactful during a time when everyone is feeling isolated thanks to pandemic restrictions. For students whose main source of support is friends, educators, or other trusted adults, a rainbow graduation can offer loved ones a chance to "shower love and appreciation" on LGBTQ youth.

"This actually has real meaning for a lot of students," says furuya.