Out in the Open
connecting rural LGBTQ people to community, knowledge, and power
Out in the Open (OITO) (formerly Green Mountain Crossroads) connects rural LGBTQ people to build community, visibility, knowledge and power. Based in Brattleboro, Vermont, the organization works both locally and regionally throughout northern New England. Each year they organize “The Summit”, a gathering place to collectively discuss and explore rural and small town experiences as LGBTQ people.
OITO envisions a resilient community of communities that works toward the transformation of our economic, social, and political relationships. The organization is actively building a multi-issue social justice movement of rural LGBTQ people.
OITO has launched several exciting media projects, including the Andrews Inn Oral History Project and Out in the Open Radio Hour.
In 2020, in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, OITO established a mutual aid relief fund for rural QTBIPOC/LGBTQ+ people, living on Abenaki territory of the Wabanaki confederacy in Vermont, New Hampshire, and other areas of rural New England. This Mutual Aid Fund will distribute money to LGBTQ folks, prioritizing applicants who are QTBIPOC.