Starbucks UK partners with LGBTQ charity that helps trans kids find hormone treatments

Starbucks U.K. is launching a partnership with a charity that advises transgender children on gender dysphoria, including, but not limited to, locating access to hormone treatments.

The charity also connects children and their parents with resources to help determine what resources they may need should they decide to transition.

What are the details?

Starbucks will sell "mermaid tail cookies" that will benefit the charity. Proceeds from the sales of the cookies will go to expanding the charity's outreach, reports say.

According to BBC LGBT correspondent Ben Hunte, who revealed the news on Twitter Friday, the charity is called Mermaids, an organization that aims to act as an advocate for trans kids and their parents.

On Twitter, Hunte wrote, "Breaking @StarbucksUK is launching a £100,00+ partnership with trans equality charity @Mermaids_Gender. Starbucks will sell a 'mermaid tail cookie' and launch a national ad campaign promoting trans rights."

"The money," he continued, "will extend the Mermaids helpline."

According to Mermaids' website, the grassroots organization has "evolved into one of the UK's leading LGBTQ+ charities, empowering thousands of people with its secure online communities, local community groups, helpline services, web resources, events and residential weekends."

The site also advises parents on how to handle your child's gender dysphoria, placing utmost importance on support.

"Supporting your child doesn't mean they'll take a particular direction or follow a particular medical pathway, like hormone therapy or gender affirming surgeries," the site says. "Still, if they do, then medical transition in young people usually consists of taking hormone blockers after the initial stages of puberty."

"Hormone blockers stop the young person's body changing in ways they don't want it to at that time, in the hope it will alleviate any distress those changes may be causing them," the site adds. "Blockers simply give time for them to reflect; they can stop at any point and a puberty typically associated with the gender they were assigned at birth will resume."

What else?

A video advertisement for the campaign aired on Sunday, according to The Independent.

The outlet reports that the video features a transgender navigating the difficulty of being referred to by his previous female name.

"James," who was formerly known as "Jemma," can be seen in various stages of discomfort in hearing people call him "Jemma" though he's clearly male-presenting.

Later in the clip, James visits his local Starbucks, where the baristas refer to him as James and nothing else. It concludes with a smiling James, and hashtag #WhatsYourName.

Susie Green, CEO of Mermaids, says, "The funds raised through #whatsyourname will allow us to make a meaningful change to our helpline that supports young trans people and their families who are so desperately in need of access to information and reassurance."

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