The Trevor Project condemns anti-Asian sentiment and racist acts of violence targeting Asian American communities across the country. Discrimination against Asian American Pacific Islander (AAPI) communities is not new, and acknowledging the country’s long history of mistreatment of marginalized communities is an important step in working towards anti-racism.
As the largest suicide prevention and crisis intervention organization supporting LGBTQ young people, our crisis services are all too familiar with the unique mental health impacts of discrimination against AAPI young people. We know that these experiences can add to the rejection, violence, and prejudice that AAPI LGBTQ young people already face every day, and can increase their risk for negative mental health outcomes such as suicidal ideation.
Our research shows that AAPI LGBTQ youth report rates of depressed mood and suicidality that are higher than rates found among straight/cisgender AAPI youth, and AAPI transgender and nonbinary youth are at three times the increased risk for attempting suicide compared to cisgender AAPI LGBQ youth.
We also estimate that more than 1.8 million LGBTQ young people seriously consider suicide each year, just in the U.S. alone. Last year, we directly served over 150,000 crisis contacts — 6% of which identified as an AAPI young person. We know as we expand our organization to reach even more of those 1.8+ million LGBTQ youth, we will soon serve a significantly higher number of AAPI LGBTQ young people.
But we can use our voices to take a stand now and work together to dedicate our programs to supporting AAPI LGBTQ youth before they experience moments of crisis. By taking an intersectional approach to anti-racist work and including culturally grounded support for AAPI communities, together we can improve mental health outcomes and save young AAPI LGBTQ lives. The Trevor Project continues to stand with the Asian American community and unequivocally condemns anti-Asian discrimination.
