WASHINGTON, DC — The Trevor Project, the world’s largest suicide prevention and crisis intervention organization for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer & questioning (LGBTQ) young people, commended Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer today for signing an executive order prohibiting the payment of state and federal funds for the dangerous and discredited practice of conversion therapy on minors. The executive order directly cites The Trevor Project’s original research on the mental health harms to LGBTQ youth caused by conversion therapy.
“LGBTQ youth are beautiful the way that they are and deserve to be loved and respected — not subjected to the dangerous and abusive practice of conversion therapy. Thank you to Governor Whitmer for taking action to protect LGBTQ youth,” said Sam Brinton (they/them pronouns), Vice President of Advocacy and Government Affairs for The Trevor Project. “While there is still much work to do in the Great Lake State, this is an amazing step forward that will help save young LGBTQ lives in Michigan.”
Over the last year, The Trevor Project has supported over 6,200 crisis contacts in Michigan. As troubling as that is, that’s less than 11% of the number of Michigan’s LGBTQ youth who we estimate seriously consider suicide each year.
Research:
- According to The Trevor Project’s 2021 National Survey on LGBTQ Youth Mental Health, 13% of LGBTQ youth reported being subjected to conversion therapy, with 83% reporting it occurred when they were under age 18. LGBTQ youth who were subjected to conversion therapy reported more than twice the rate of attempting suicide in the past year compared to those who were not.
- A peer-reviewed study by The Trevor Project, published in the American Journal of Public Health, found that LGBTQ youth who underwent conversion therapy were more than twice as likely to report having attempted suicide and more than 2.5 times as likely to report multiple suicide attempts in the past year.
For journalists looking to learn more about how to cover the issue of conversion therapy, here is a guide on best practices.
