Photo By Kaleidoscope Behavioral Health
Of the 1.6 million youth homeless, up to 40% identify as LGBTQ+ which is disproportionately represented by the 7% of the population that identify as LGBTQ+ youth. The main four causes for homelessness for those identifying as LGBTQ+ are family rejection from their sexual orientation or gender identity, aging out of the foster care system, financial and emotional neglect, and physical, sexual, or emotional abuse. More issues are that LGBTQ+ people are more likely to become homeless at younger ages compared to those that don’t identify as LGBTQ+ and that 1 in 4 teens are forced to leave their home after coming out. There is also a difference of LGBTQ+ youth homeless percentages in different states. Around 25-50% of homeless youth identify as LGBTQ+ on the East and West coasts compared to 10-25% in the Midwest. As it is more accepted along the coasts to identify as LGBTQ+, it can be speculated that the youth are traveling to the coasts where they will be more likely to be accepted.
Below are some articles that delve deeper into the issue and some resources that can help stop LGBTQ+ youth homelessness.
https://youth.gov/youth-topics/lgbtq-youth/homelessness
https://lesley.edu/article/the-cost-of-coming-out-lgbt-youth-homelessness
No comments:
Post a Comment