2-12-25
The Republican Party is waging a war against the LGBTQ community, especially targeting those who are Transgender and LGBTQ individuals under the age of 18. It is based on ignorance, intolerance, and downright prejudice. And what is more concerning is that it is already having seriously detrimental effects upon queer people, especially those who are minors.
So let’s explore the problem a little more in depth. The Trevor Project is an organization that provides a crisis hotline for LGBTQ minors and also conducts a lot of very important research with regards to queer youth. Here are some statistics they’ve put together, and I want you to really pay attention and think about what these numbers mean. In 2021, they conducted a nationwide survey of close to 35,000 LGBTQ young people (aged 13 to 24), and here are some key numbers that they found. 42% of LGBTQ youth had seriously considered suicide in the past year, and for Transgender/Nonbinary youth, that number was 52%. 72% of LGBTQ young people reported symptoms of generalized anxiety disorder in the previous two weeks, and only 1 in 3 indicated that they lived in an LGBTQ affirming home. In the past year, 48% said that they wanted professional counseling but had not received it, and LGBTQ youth who had been subjected to conversion therapy were more than twice as likely to attempt suicide when compared to those who had not been subjected to the barbaric practice. And in 2024, The Trevor Project found that 90% of LGBTQ youth said there well-being was being negatively impacted by recent politics.
Think about those numbers. Really think about them. They’re extremely worrying aren’t they? You damn right they are! And with Republicans regaining the White House and getting a majority in Congress, the negative effects on LGBTQ youth are worsening, especially for those who are Transgender because the Republican Party is waging a vicious war against the Transgender Community. Studies have shown that gender affirming care for minors improves their quality of life and decreases suicide rates. The major medical, psychiatric, and psychological professional organizations in the United States support gender affirming care for minors as a result. And it should be noted that such care is not taken lightly. The individual in question, their parents, counselors, doctors, etc are all involved. And when medication is prescribed, it can be stopped at any time. Yet despite all this evidence, most of the Republican Party is trying to take away the ability of parents to provide vital gender affirming care for their Transgender kids. And when Transgender youth can’t get the care they need, their quality of life dramatically decreases, and the likelihood of suicide increases. Think about that.
We’re also seeing Republicans attacking LGBTQ rights in schools, which is exemplified by the horrible “don’t say gay” laws that have been passed in multiple red states around the country. Such laws will obviously worsen the above statistics in those areas because they make LGBTQ students feel like something’s wrong with them and increases the likelihood that they’re going to be bullied by other students. Another problem with these laws is that they make teachers and counselors less likely to help queer students in crisis because they’re afraid they’ll get in trouble. And when you consider that only one in three LGBTQ young people in the study indicated they lived in an LGBTQ affirming home, it’s quite common that LGBTQ students want to talk to a trusted faculty member in school when they’re unable to do so at home. But now that important resource has been taken away from them. What do you think the result will be? Again, it will worsen their quality of life and increase the likelihood of suicide.
We are going through dangerous, uncertain, troubling times. That’s for sure. As a result, it’s really important for those of us in the know to speak up and make our voices heard. Educate people and try to open their minds. Put pressure on elected officials, businesses, and organizations to be more supportive of the LGBTQ Community. And be damn sure to vote in future elections to put in officials who will stand up for queer rights and will work to do what is right.
While the future is scary, things are not hopeless. We will endure and get through this.
Here are a couple of websites you can share to help educate people and open their minds with regards to the Transgender Community and the LGBTQ Community as a whole:
GLAAD (glaad.org)
The Trevor Project (thetrevorproject.org)
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