The Trevor Project’s third annual survey, National Survey on LGBTQ Youth Mental Health, brings to light the difficulties for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and questioning (LGBTQ) youth ages 13-24 experiences across the U.S. The Trevor Project is the world’s largest suicide prevention and crisis intervention organization for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer & questioning young people. Data includes the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, mental health care disparities, discrimination, food insecurity, conversion therapy, and suicide.
Some key findings from the survey include:
- 42% of LGBTQ youth seriously considered attempting suicide in the past year, including more than half of transgender and nonbinary youth.
- 12% of white youth attempted suicide compared to 31% of Native/ Indigenous youth, 21% of Black youth, 21% of multiracial youth, 18% of Latinx youth, and 12% of Asian/Pacific Islander youth.
- 94% of LGBTQ youth reported that recent politics negatively impacted their mental health.
- 70% of LGBTQ youth stated that their mental health was “poor” most of the time or always during COVID-19.
- 48% of LGBTQ youth reported they wanted counseling from a mental health professional but could not receive it in the past year.
- Overwhelmingly, LGBTQ youth of all races/ethnicities wanted crisis services like a hotline to focus on LGBTQ youth if they needed it.
- 30% of LGBTQ youth experienced food insecurity in the past month, including half of all Native/Indigenous LGBTQ youth.
- 75% of LGBTQ youth reported that they had experienced discrimination based on their sexual orientation or gender identity at least once in their lifetime.
- Half of all LGBTQ youth of color reported discrimination based on their race/ethnicity in the past year, including 67% of Black LGBTQ youth and 60% of Asian/Pacific Islander LGBTQ youth.
- 13% of LGBTQ youth reported being subjected to conversion therapy, with 83% reporting it occurred when they were under age 18.
In addition, the Trevor Project received two huge donations last week to support suicide prevention among LGBTQ youth. Las Vegas Raiders defensive end Carl Nassib, who came out to the public last Monday as gay, donated $100,000, and the NFL matched his charity gift. The NFL released a statement, “The NFL is committed to year-long efforts around diversity, equity, and inclusion. We proudly support the LGBTQ+ community and will continue to work alongside the Trevor Project and our other community partners to further enhance our collective work and commitment to this space.” Founded in 1998, The Trevor Project is a leading national organization providing crisis intervention and suicide prevention services to LGBTQ people under 25.