The Impact of LGBT Activism on the Mental Well-Being of LGBT Youth

“LGBTQ+ youth are in crisis,” LGBTQ Nation reports. “Anti-LGBTQ+ laws lead to ‘public health crisis’ with higher suicide rates among queer youth,” declares The Advocate. Time announces, “Anti-LGBTQ+ policies have an alarming effect on youth mental health, survey finds.”

Every year, queer media report a crisis in LGBT mental health, sourced to The Trevor Project. But what these alarming numbers really show is a media-driven manufactured story that far too many young people believe.

In 2024, the highest concerns included suicide, mental health, and bullying in schools. The report states 90 percent of LGBT youth respondents said recent politics “negatively impacted” their mental health. Nearly 50 percent reported bullying in school, and nearly 40 percent had “seriously considered” suicide in the last year.

These alarming numbers have, once again, fueled the narrative that Republican “anti-LGBT” legislation and rhetoric are escalating mental health concerns in LGBT-identifying young people. The Advocate argues, “More than 550 anti-LGBTQ+ bills were introduced across the U.S. in 2023, and 80 were passed into law. In 2024, 487 anti-LGBTQ+ bills have been introduced and 21 have passed into law.”

The Trevor Project determined from their survey, “With such striking numbers and families literally wanting to uproot their homes to seek safety, lawmakers must seriously reconsider the real and damaging impact that their anti-LGBTQ+ policies and rhetoric create. No ‘political victory’ should be worth risking the lives of young people.”

However, is this really what the survey is demonstrating? More to the point, are the survey and related reporting actually the cause of the problem? To begin with, The Trevor Project is built for LGBT-identifying young people, and when one accesses the site, an immediate pop-up states, “Quick Exit: Press the ESC button three times to quickly leave our site.” The idea is that if a minor is viewing the website and his parents enter the room, he can quickly hide it from them.

The organization describes itself as “the leading suicide prevention and crisis intervention nonprofit organization for LGBTQ+ young people. We provide information & support to LGBTQ+ young people 24/7, all year round.” Although The Trevor Project’s privacy policy states it may report abuse or immediate harm to state authorities during chats or phone conversations if the counselor feels it is necessary, it does not inform parents.

During the survey process, which is anonymous, when a minor under the age of 17 states he has attempted suicide in the past year, there is no indication any authorities are notified. Parental consent is not obtained before speaking with a minor, and the Project states it will not disclose personal or sensitive information to parents or legal guardians. Before its questions related to mental health and suicide, the organization presents a statement offering a crisis helpline within their organization and the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline.

The 2024 online survey was conducted between Sept. 13 and Dec. 16, 2023, and resulted in 18,663 respondents qualified to be part of the results, nearly half of whom were aged 13-17. The survey’s age cap is 24. In terms of gender identity, 59 percent identified as transgender or nonbinary, or thought they might be trans.

Disturbingly, those in the 13-17 age category were more likely to consider (46 percent) or attempt (16 percent) suicide in the last year than those aged 18-24. However, here is where the data begins to suggest that young people may not be reporting accurate information. The highest reports of negative experiences overwhelmingly came from self-reported indigenous, trans, nonbinary, or pansexual participants.

As mentioned above, 59 percent identified as some variation of trans, 16 percent identified as pansexual, and 1 percent identified as indigenous. This would give us roughly 11,000 trans or nonbinary individuals, 3,000 pansexual individuals, and 187 indigenous individuals. Breaking down these percentages, the rough number of trans or nonbinary, pansexual, and indigenous respondents would be fewer than 20 individuals.

However, among those who considered or attempted suicide, the percentages for those who identified as trans or nonbinary, pansexual, or indigenous were extremely high. For the trans and nonbinary or queer categories, 43 percent-52 percent considered suicide, and 13 percent-18 percent attempted it. For the pansexual category, the numbers were 47 percent and 16 percent, respectively; and for indigenous respondents, 48 percent and 24 percent. (The survey reported percentages within groups rather than giving the numbers as a percentage of the whole, then compared those totals with each other.)

This tells us that the more specific the self-identity, the more negative the experiences reported. These three groups had overwhelmingly higher numbers in all categories, from discrimination to bullying to mental health concerns.

Regardless of gender, sexual, or racial identity, every other group remained in close competition in reporting negative feelings, suicidality, and external abuse or discrimination. Nearly all participants stated recent news and politics negatively affected them, with 66 percent reporting anxiety and 53 percent reporting depression.

Rather than demonstrating a universal, shared experience of anti-LGBT oppression, which could not possibly make sense considering the wide diversity of the groups surveyed, this indicates participants responded the way they thought they should.

An Asian, nonbinary asexual should not be indicating the exact same level of distress, discrimination, and public harassment as a Hispanic, queer, “cisgender” woman. Yet, across the board, young people all reported the same outcomes that one would expect from an advocacy outlet insisting they need special protections and are disproportionately targeted with hate.

Young LGBT-identifying people are reporting exactly what the media and LGBT activists tell them is their reality, framed within the perpetual assertion that Republicans are intentionally targeting them for discrimination and hate. This, along with the social trend of highly specific preferred identities in young people, is how you end up with trans or nonbinary, pansexual, and indigenous teenagers as the “most targeted and oppressed” group in America.

The mental stress is real. Despite near-universal public celebration, acceptance, and inclusion in all areas of life — GLAAD, a highly prominent LGBT activism organization, boasts of nearly 50 LGBT-themed special calendar events annually — LGBT youth, especially minors, are convinced they’re more oppressed than ever. That is not organic or the result of any actual discrimination or mistreatment.

LGBT media — and all media — constantly bombard LGBT youth with the propaganda of oppression and victimization. From the moment they access The Trevor Project website, they are isolated, treated as if their existence is a dangerous secret, and even their parents are kept in the dark.

As they navigate all 134 questions, each asking them to report how hateful and harmful the outside world is, whatever fears they have are amplified and validated. It is a self-fulfilling cycle, and kids as young as 13 are being trapped in it.