86% of transgender and nonbinary youth say recent debates about state laws restricting the rights of transgender people have negatively impacted their mental health.
April 20, 2023 — The Trevor Project, the leading suicide prevention organization for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer & questioning (LGBTQ) young people, condemned the U.S. House of Representative’s passage of H.R. 734, a bill that would effectively ban transgender women and girls from participating in school sports, and limit opportunities for intersex and nonbinary athletes.
Statement from Casey Pick (she/her pronouns), Director of Law & Policy for The Trevor Project:
“This unfair and unnecessary legislation offers a distorted interpretation of Title IX and a false choice. We can protect the progress women have made in sports and promote fairness, while also fostering the inclusion of transgender women and girls. As our nation continues to face a mental health crisis and an onslaught of anti-LGBTQ state laws, our elected officials in Congress should focus their time and our taxpayer dollars on making our schools safe and mental health care more accessible — not pushing trans young people further to the sidelines.
“To the transgender, nonbinary, and intersex young people witnessing these harmful public debates: please know that we are fighting for you with a broad coalition of advocates at the national, state, and local levels. We will continue to work with the Department of Education to ensure its recently-announced proposed rule on Title IX is implemented in a way that is equitable and effectively combats discrimination. Thankfully, President Biden has already made clear that he would veto this bill if it made it to his desk.”
Research & Polling:
- According to The Trevor Project’s 2022 U.S. National Survey, nearly half of transgender women and girls reported seriously considering suicide in the past year, and 12% attempted suicide. Further, 77% of transgender women and girls reported that they had experienced discrimination based on their gender identity. And young people who experienced this type of discrimination reported more than twice the rate of attempting suicide in the past year compared to those who did not.
- A September 2021 research brief on LGBTQ Youth Sports Participation found that only 32% of LGBTQ youth reported that they had ever participated in sports for a school or community league or club, compared to 68% who never participated.
- One LGBTQ young person in the survey reported, “I never hated sports, but I hated how I was treated by kids and adults who played sports. The locker room was always a nightmare, the athletic kids at my school hated me, the coaches at my school hated me, and as much as I didn’t care for a lot of mainstream sports in general, I avoided athletic activities out of terror, not disinterest.”
- Another explained, “I probably wouldn’t be allowed onto the boys’ team because I’m a trans boy (both parents and school won’t allow this), and even if I was allowed I’d be at a huge risk of bullying.”
- Further, a 2022 peer-reviewed study found that many transgender high school girls who reported an interest in playing sports cited concerns around harassment, stigma, and gendered spaces.
- The Trevor Project’s research also consistently demonstrates that transgender and nonbinary youth who have access to gender-affirming spaces and acceptance from adults and peers report lower rates of attempting suicide in the past year.
- According to a poll conducted by Morning Consult on behalf of The Trevor Project, 86% of transgender and nonbinary youth say recent debates about state laws restricting the rights of transgender people have negatively impacted their mental health. When asked about new policies that would ban transgender girls from playing on girls’ sports teams and transgender boys from playing on boys’ sports teams, 64% of transgender and nonbinary youth said it made them feel angry, 44% felt sad, 39% felt stressed, and 1 in 4 felt scared.
If you or someone you know needs help or support, The Trevor Project’s trained crisis counselors are available 24/7 at 1-866-488-7386, via chat at TheTrevorProject.org/Get-Help, or by texting START to 678678.
