Transgender Day of Visibility
by
Cameron Vilain, CPS, MSW
(they/them/theirs)
My name is Cameron Vilain and I have worked at Bay Cove since 2017. I am proud to represent Bay Cove Human Services as a nonbinary transgender person who is both a certified peer specialist and a clinical social worker. I came out as transgender in 2009 at the age of 14;as someone who has lived most of my teenage years and all of my adult life in this identity, I have faced certain adversities in the personal and professional sphere that greatly inform my work as a peer specialist at Bay Cove. My role as a peer specialist has me using my own lived experiences with mental health challenges and substance use issues to provide person-centered emotional support to individuals receiving services in our mental health division. When I meet with individuals, we share conversations premised in mutuality and candid back-and-forth sharing with each other; our ability to bond over our similarities is the very tool that enables the generation of hope, an essential component of recovery. The individuals I support have dealt with many significant struggles in their lives, including mental illness, substance abuse disorders, housing insecurity, domestic abuse, and sexual violence and exploitation. And it is well-documented that LGBTQ individuals are at greater risk of ALL of these forms of adversity, as queer identity is still a stigmatized identity in many communities in Boston, the broader United States, and worldwide. This is particularly true of Black transgender individuals, who are disproportionately likely to attempt or complete suicide, and are at significantly higher risk of being victims of sexual violence and/or exploitation, physical abuse, and murder. Black transgender women are one of the most vulnerable populations in the United States; I firmly believe that providing support to our transgender recipients of services at Bay Cove is an essential means of protecting, and possibly saving, their lives.
When considering the intersection of my own queer identity with the professional services I provide as a peer specialist: there are many individuals I support who have disclosed their queer identities to me, and as such, I am able to connect with them on an even deeper peer-to-peer level, where I may create a space of safety wherein they begin to unpack and process how their queer identities have impacted their life’s journey, and their recovery. I have supported several transgender individuals, some of whom guard their identity for fear of discrimination (referred to in the transgender community as being “stealth”), and this work is particularly rewarding to me. I have assisted transgender clients with gaining access to trans-competent healthcare, commencing their social and/or medical transitions, and legally changing their names. And at all times, it is inextricably through the lens of my own transgender identity that I am able to provide compassionate person-led peer support, understanding the increased importance of discretion and privacy. This is the essential fundamental gift that the model of peer support provides.
The longer I work at Bay Cove, and the more individuals I support disclose their queer identity to me, the better I am able to understand that many more individuals receiving services identify as LGBTQ than you might think. And when you think about it, it is no surprise given the intersection of queer identity with many issues our clients have faced–homelessness, disconnection from family, and substance use issues, to name a few. Many of our clients choose not to discuss their identities due to shame, or because they have not accessed safe spaces to process their feelings around sexuality and/or gender identity. I believe that if we choose to be an outspokenly supportive human services agency that champions all LGBTQ individuals, more of our clients will begin to come out of the shadows and explore parts of their identities that they have suppressed, kept secret, or denied within themselves. It starts at the individual level of positioning ourselves, as workers, as proud allies to the LGBTQ community. It means putting rainbow flags in our offices, putting our pronouns in our email legers, hosting events and outings for clients during Pride Month in June, and calling out homophobia and transphobia wherever we see it. When we educate ourselves on the importance of protecting and serving our transgender clients with respect, our clients see this and respond to this. It is with pride that I serve all my clients with the culturally competent support that they deserve.
