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Bloomington-- While the issue of gay marriage continues to attract headlines across the country, Indiana University (IU) looks to broaden the dialogue by hosting the second Sexual Minority Youth in the Heartland Conference (SMYHL), July 23-25, 2004 on the IU campus in Bloomington. The conference focus for this year's event is youth of color. The conference is aimed at youth-serving professionals who seek a better understanding of how to best work with sexual minority youth in order to foster an atmosphere of safety, support, inclusion and opportunity.

Alejandro Marcel, executive director of Minority Public Health Consultants in Beverly, Massachusetts states, "What is unique about the SMYHL conference is the level of effort to present youth in light of multiplicities regarding identity and expression such as race, ethnicity, gender identity and sexual orientation. As an educator and trainer in GLBT youth, it is refreshing to participate in a conference that will focus on race and ethnicity and how that factors into issues for sexual minority youth." For detailed information about the program and schedule of events, visit www.smyhl.indiana.edu.