BreakOUT!

BreakOUT! is a youth-centered organization based in New Orleans, LA dedicated to transforming the lives of LGBTQI young people directly impacted by the criminal legal system. The organization provides comprehensive support through youth organizing, healing justice initiatives, and leadership development programs specifically designed for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, gender non-conforming, queer, nonbinary, and intersex youth ages 13 and older. BreakOUT! serves Black, African Diasporic, Latinx, Asian, Indigenous, Arab, and multi-racial youth throughout the New Orleans community, addressing the critical intersection of LGBTQI identity and criminalization. By combining evidence-based organizing strategies with trauma-informed healing practices, BreakOUT! empowers young people to become leaders and advocates within their own communities. The organization's approach recognizes that many LGBTQI youth face disproportionate contact with the criminal legal system and works to interrupt this cycle through skill-building, peer support, and systemic advocacy. Operating within the rich cultural tradition of resistance that characterizes the Deep South, BreakOUT! mobilizes the collective power of LGBTQI youth to challenge criminalization and build pathways toward justice, safety, and self-determination in New Orleans and beyond.