The well-being of LGBTQ+ young people suffers not because of who they are but due to mistreatment and stigmatization, a leading suicide-prevention organization contends.
The Trevor Project has released a state-by-state analysis of the mental health of LGBTQ+ teens and young adults. The survey of 18,000 LGBTQ+ young people ages 13 to 24 examines suicide risk, access to care, discrimination, bullying and the impact of anti-LGBTQ+ policies, among other factors.
Young people made the following statements about where they live:
I live in a community that is accepting of LGBTQ+ young people.
- Arkansas: 36%
- Hawaii: 88%
- Idaho: 31%
- Puerto Rico: 60%
- Washington, D.C.: 97%
I or my family have considered leaving for another state because of LGBTQ+ young people related politics and laws.
- Connecticut: 19%
- Kentucky: 56%
- Montana: 53%
- Texas: 58%
- West Virginia: 46%
Percentage of LGBTQ+ young people who have seriously considered suicide in the past year:
- Arizona: 39%
- Colorado: 41%
- Louisiana: 32%
- Michigan: 37%
- Vermont: 44%
LGBTQ+ young people were physically threatened or harmed:
- Alaska: 16%
- New York: 22%
- Rhode Island: 17%
- South Carolina: 25%
- Wyoming: 29%
More from DA: Expert warns schools may face a ‘fiscal buzzsaw’ this year
LGBTQ+ young people who reported experiencing symptoms of depression:
- Alabama: 56%
- Kansas: 49%
- Maryland: 48%
- Tennessee: 57%
- Utah: 53%
LGBTQ+ young people who wanted and received mental health care:
- Florida: 44%
- Massachusetts: 58%
- Mississippi: 41%
- New Jersey: 55%
- Wisconsin: 53%
More from DA on safety & wellness
Student mental health: Early intervention is most important
Student mental health will continue to suffer if schools don’t have the resources to intervene until kids are in crisis, a new report contends.
There are 6 ways schools could feel Medicaid cuts
The superintendents’ association and other advocacy groups warn Congress funding cuts would harm the most vulnerable students.
How a lesson can save a life: Educator’s guide to “A Teddy Bear’s Dream”
Imagine a world where teddy bears are no longer symbols of childhood innocence, but memorials to young lives lost. This is the stark reality “A Teddy Bear’s Dream” confronts us with.
