The Ignored Children of our Communities

Imagine you have kept a big secret for years. You’ve kept it tucked away from everyone’s view because you are petrified of what would happen if you told this secret. You are 14 years old and the world feels like one giant haunted roller coaster. But one day, you realize the secret is making you sick, and you cannot keep it hidden any longer. So you tell your parents – you are gay. The response you get is one of angry rejection and before you know it, you are thrown out of your childhood home, without any resources or anyone to turn to – no money, no family close by and no where to call home.

Every year this happens to thousands of our youth population. 20%-40% of homeless youth in the United States identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender or queer. 1 out of every 4 children who come out of the closet are kicked out of their homes. In surveys of these children they report that family conflict is the primary cause for their homelessness: 50% of queer teens initially receive negative reactions from family members after coming out and 26% of those teens are forced to leave their homes. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports that because of the discrimination they face, queer teens are especially vulnerable to suicidal thoughts and behaviors. Queer teens are twice as likely as their heterosexual peers to attempt suicide. Further, many reports have found that queer homeless teens are highly vulnerable to a variety of mental illnesses such as depression, psychosomatic disorders, social problems, being withdrawn, substance abuse and risky sexual behavior (e.g., trading sexual acts for basic necessities such as food, shelter, money to survive). The stress that they are forced to endure from being homeless and marginalized is also a risk factor for them to develop chronic 

The stress and emotional harm that a young person experiences when they are not accepted by their parents or peers is something that cannot be measured when one observes the impact it makes on a person’s life. It is common when spending time with the LGBTQ (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer) youth community to hear personal stories of the family violence and abuse (sexual, verbal ,and emotional) they are subjected to simply due to their sexual orientation. These are the children of our future generation but the support services available to them when they face these situations are miniscule. All children deserve a loving and supportive home and community, and our society and government should fight to ensure this is the case.

There are many big cities in our country that are seen as having a solid infrastructure in place to help the homeless population, however the resources available are not always conducive to positive health for homeless queer youth. In New York City it is estimated that there are around 1,500 homeless youth who identify as LGBTQ, but only 200 beds are available in youth shelters across the city each night. One center serving queer youth, the Ali Forney center, reports that they put at least 100 children a night on a waiting list for a bed. New York city also cut the state funding for homeless shelters by 50% in 2011.

Being lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender or queer is not an experience unique to the developed worldDR2] . There are LGBTQ-identified people all over the world, and there has not been enough research done to even begin to document what percent of the world’s population they comprise. But we do know that it is hard to document people within the LGBTQ community because many are scared to come out due to well-grounded fear of the social repercussions. If we want a better future for our world, filled with healthy and cared for children who have the potential to become productive members of our economy[DR3]  – this has got to change. Children should not have to live in a closet of fear because they think they will be abused. Children should not have to keep a secret about who they are because they fear they will have nowhere to live. These are the children of our future generation and they deserve all the support and love we can provide. They deserve to be heard.

For more information about what happens to these children once they become adults please check out the following:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZbAqtRNKnDQ

http://sfonline.barnard.edu/a-new-queer-agenda/nobody-should-ever-feel-the-way-that-i-felt-a-portrait-of-jay-toole-and-queer-homelessness/0/

Bailey Brandt

Ryan Chan

Doug White

Shadi Sendi

Hannah Reda

Blog Post Draft

11/21/2013

[DR1]