COMMUNITY OF HOPE

SUICIDE & DEPRESSION {Note: Numbers appearing in parentheses "( )" at the end of each statement denote the source of that information. All sources are listed at the bottom of this page.}
  • Suicide is the leading cause of death among gay and lesbian youth. (1)
  • Gay and lesbian youth are 2 to 6 times more likely to attempt suicide than heterosexual youth. (1)
  • Over 30% of all reported teen suicides each year are committed by gay and lesbian youth. (1)

    REJECTION

  • 50% of all gay and lesbian youth report that their parents reject them due to their sexual orientation. (2)
  • 26% of gay and lesbian youth are forced to leave home because of conflicts over their sexual orientation. (1)
  • In a study of 194 gay and lesbian youth, 25% were verbally abused by parents, and nearly 10% dealt with threatened or actual violence. (12)

    HOMELESSNESS

  • Approximately 40% of homeless youth are identified as gay, lesbian or bisexual. (3)
  • Service providers estimate that gay, lesbian and bisexual youth make up 20-40% of homeless youth in urban areas. (18)
  • In a study of male teenagers self-described as gay or bisexual, 27% moved away from home because of conflict with family members over sexual orientation. Almost half had run away from home at least once. (2)

    SUBSTANCE ABUSE

  • Gays and lesbians are at much higher risk than the heterosexual population for alcohol and drug abuse. (1)
  • Approximately 30% of both the lesbian and gay male populations have problems with alcohol. (1)
  • Substantially higher proportions of homosexual people use alcohol, marijuana or cocaine than is the case in the general population. (6)
  • 55% of gay men have had a substance abuse problem sometime in their life. (10)

    HIGH DROP OUT RATES

  • Approximately 28% of gay and lesbian youth drop out of high school because of discomfort (due to verbal and physical abuse) in the school environment. (2)
  • Gay and lesbian youth’s discomfort stems from fear of name calling and physical harm. (4)
  • Gay and lesbian youth are at greater risk for school failure than heterosexual children. Academic failure, lack of student involvement and low commitment to school are profound for gay and lesbian youth because schools are neither safe, healthy nor productive places for them to learn. (1)

    VERBAL & PHYSICAL ASSAULTS

  • Teenage students (gay AND straight) say the worst harassment in school is being called "gay." (11)
  • In a national survey, youth (gay AND straight) described being called "lesbian" or "gay" as the most deeply upsetting form of sexual harassment they experienced. (14)
  • Gay students hear anti-gay slurs as often as 26 times each day; faculty intervention occurs in only about 3% of those cases. (9)
  • In Seattle, 34% of students who described themselves as gay, lesbian or bisexual reported being the target of anti-gay harassment or violence at school or on the way to or from school, compared to 6% of heterosexual students. (16)
  • Gay and lesbian youth live, work and attempt to learn in constant fear of physical harm at school. (4)
  • 27% of gay and lesbian youth have been physically hurt by another student. (12)
  • In 53 schools in Washington State, 77 incidents of anti-gay harassment and violence have been reported in the past 3 years, with 34 of these incidents (44%) serious enough to warrant possible criminal allegations. (15)

    LACK OF SUPPORT

  • Few administrators discipline students for name-calling and harassment of gay and lesbian students. (5)
  • Teachers may wish to stop harassment and anti-gay comments, but few have had any specific training which would teach them to intervene effectively and many fear reprisals without the explicit support and backing of their administration. (5)
  • In Michigan, 28% of school personnel surveyed determined their school environment to be emotionally unsafe for gay and lesbian youth. (17)
  • Over 50% of national youth servicing organizations report that they do not have services or resources in place to educate youth on sexual orientation or to support gay and lesbian youth. (13)

    LACK OF ROLE MODELS

  • There are very few openly gay staff members or teachers in schools. (5)
  • The presence of openly gay and/or lesbian staff members is a crucial component of any school program seeking to reduce bigotry and provide support for gay and lesbian students. (5)

    VICTIMS OF CRIME

  • Gays and lesbians are the most frequent victims of hate crimes. (7) Gays and lesbians are at least 7 times more likely to be crime victims than heterosexual people. (7)
  • At least 75% of crimes against gays and lesbians are not reported to anyone. (8)
  • In a study of 5 metropolitan areas (including Boston, Chicago, Minneapolis/St. Paul, New York City, and San Francisco), there were 1,833 [reported) incidents of anti-gay and anti-lesbian crimes, which was a 31% increase over the previous year. (8)

    WHY SHOULD THIS ISSUE BE TALKED ABOUT IN SCHOOLS?

  • In a typical class of 30 students, 8 students (27% of the class) will be directly affected by homosexuality of self, one or more siblings, or one or both parents. (10)

    Sources:

    1. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, “Report of the Secretary's Task Force on Youth Suicide: Gay Male and Lesbian Youth Suicide.” (1989)

    2. Remafedi, Gary. (1987). "Male Homosexuality: The Adolescent's Perspective." Pediatrics, Issue 79. pp. 326-337.

    3. Seattle Commission on Children and Youth. (1986). "Survey of Street Youth." Seattle, WA: Orion Center.

    4. Eversole, T. "Addressing Specific Risk Factors Among Lesbians and Gays.' Counseling Gay, Lesbian and Bisexual Youth Training Manual. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.

    5. Governor's Commission on Gay and Lesbian Youth. (1993). "Making Schools Safe for Gay and Lesbian Youth: Breaking the Silence in Schools and in Families." Education Report. Boston, MA.

    6. McKirnan, D. J. & Peterson, P. L. (1989). 'Alcohol and Drug Use Among Homosexual Men and Women: Epidemiology and Population Characteristics." Addictive Behaviors, 14 (5). pp. 545-553.

    7. SIECUS Fact Sheet on Comprehensive Sexuality Education. (February/March 1993). "Sexual Orientation and Identity." SIECUS Report.

    8. National Gay and Lesbian Task Force Policy Institute Report. (1991). Washington, DC.

    9. Massachusetts Department of Education Survey, 1997

    10. "Breaking the Silence for Lesbian, Gay and Bisexual Youth." (1996) New Hartford, NY.

    11. Harris/Scholastic Research, "Hostile Hallways: AAUW Survey of Sexual Harassment in America's Schools" (1993)

    12. Anthony D'Augelli, unpublished study, 1997. Studied 194 lesbian, gay and bisexual youth aged 14 to 21 attending social and support groups in fourteen metropolitan areas.

    13. Advocates for Youth. Survey and Needs Assessment of Youth Serving Organizations Capacity for Working with Sexual Minority Youth, March 1995.

    14. American Association of University Women, 1993. A total of 1,632 field surveys were completed by public school students grades 8- 11, in 79 schools across the U.S.

    15. Safe Schools Anti-Violence Documentation Project, Washington State. Third Annual Report, 1996.

    16. The 1995 Seattle Teen Health Risk Survey. Over 8,400 Seattle high school students completed the survey.

    17. 1997 survey of 300 superintendents, school counselors and psychologists in public and private schools in five Michigan counties, conducted by the Gay, Lesbian, Straight Teacher's Network.

    18. The National Network of Runaway and Youth Services. To Whom Do They Belong?: Runaway, Homeless and Other Youth in High-Risk Situations in the 1990's. Washington, DC. The National Network, 1991.