Dutch Magazine Winq launches portrait stories of young LGBTI carers in landmark visibility campaign

In June 2025, the Dutch LGBTI magazine Winq released a series of portrait stories exploring the experiences of 5 young carers that are part of the LGBTI community. This initiative, carried out in collaboration with the Strategische Alliantie Jonge Mantelzorg, aims to give visibility to what it means to be a young carer and an LGBTI individual, exploring the specific challenges and unique experiences that come with these multifaceted identities. 

This landmark campaign amplifies the voices of young carers without rewriting them, a powerful example of communication that centres people with lived experiences. Laura, Gino, Gyliano, Ingemare and Michael tell their stories in their own words, exploring their journeys of ‘finding themselves’ while caring for others from a young age. 

Their stories are available in Dutch at the links below, but automatic AI translation can be activated in the browser (see instructions here), to access these testimonies in multiple languages. 

Laura is a young carer: “I know that my mother cannot handle the care alone, but I want to live my own life”

Gino is a young carer: “I discovered that I wanted to live as a boy, but it was difficult to make room for that at home”

Gyliano is a young carer: “Caring for my grandfather is intensive because it is so personal: now it’s me taking care of him instead of the other way around”

Ingemare is a young carer: “In retrospect, I would have liked someone who could have said strictly and honestly: choose for yourself”

Michael is a young carer: “I had hidden my feelings for boys; caring for my sister took priority”

This topic is explored further in the recent position paper by Eurocarers on LGBTI carers in Europe. The report was written in collaboration with the Strategische Alliantie Jonge Mantelzorg and other notable contributors, and features a section dedicated specifically to young LGBTI carers.

Cover photo: (c) Tengbeh Kamara