LGBTQ Youth Homelessness

Cristina Oliveira Mark Barnes
DATE  3 May 2018
LGBTQ youth homelessness The largest and de most powerful nation in the world the United States fell in taking care of their youth. Four million and two hundred thousand children and young adults don’t have home in the United States. Youth Homelessness is a national crisis in urban, suburban and rural communities. Lesbian, gay , bisexual, transgender (LGBTQ) make up to only five to seven percent of the general youth population. Forty percent of homeless in the United states are LGBTQ.

The statistics is not accurate because lots of them are living with friends they are called “couch surfing” frequently jumping from one house to another. Others are living with people trading sex for food and shelter. They are kids between 11-24 years old. How this situation starts? Surprisingly LGBTQ are bullied at home, rejected because of their sexual orientation or gender identity, physically, emotional or sexual abuse; aging out of foster care system, and financial and emotional neglect.
The problems didn’t stop there they are reject and are bullied also at school, in the workplace and social settings. They are kicked out of a family and society for being who they are and this trauma is a part of the lives of these young people. Kids need acceptance, they need experience an environment that supports them for being themselves.Family rejection leads to a host additional risk factors for LGBTQ youth, regardless of their housing status.
For example, according to the Family Acceptance Project, LGBTQ youth who come from highly rejecting families are more than eight times as likely to have attempted suicide as LGBTQ peers with no family rejection.While homeless, LGBTQ youth are also at greater risk for traumatic experiences including: engaging in survival sex that often results in sexual assault, victimization, substance abuse, mental health problems, promiscuity, HIV, STDs, social violence, stigma and discrimination.