The youth mental health crisis has escalated into a nationwide epidemic, but a new research survey reveals its alarmingly disproportionate toll on queer youth. The study was published during Pride by Born This Way Foundation – a not-for-profit organization co-founded by Lady Gaga (Stefani Germanotta) and her mother Cynthia Germanotta – in collaboration with Benenson Strategy Group – a New York-based strategic research consultancy.
“Here we are during Pride Month and we're so proud to be the birthplace of the LGBTQ movement right here in New York,” Governor Kathy Hochul said at her inaugural 2023 Youth Mental Health Summit, where Germanotta was a keynote speaker. “But think about the fact that almost 70 percent of LGBTQ+ kids feel persistently sad and hopeless. And 37 percent of them have made a suicide plan… Those are facts we have to come to terms with. They just can't be something you read in the paper one day and turn the page. You can't ignore them.”
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An early advocate of the LGBTQ+ community since its inception in 2011, Born This Way Foundation (BTWF) strives to destigmatize mental health and offer resources to youth across the nation. “There were 2 main factors in the founding of Born This Way Foundation,” Germanotta the organization’s co-founder and President, shares with Teen Vogue. “The first was my daughter Stefani’s mental health story she decided to share. As she developed a very organic relationship with her fans and a movement began before we even formalized the foundation, young people around the world told their stories in return.” Germanotta notes that their central goals are prevention, equipping young people with skills, to eliminate the stigma around mental health, and to validate people’s feelings around the world. “The lack of kindness is what profoundly impacted my daughter,” she adds. “Had it been present at a time when she needed it, it might’ve changed her mental health journey.”
BTWF’s Director of Research and Evaluation Dr. Claudia-Santi Fernandes – who applies her background in teaching, counseling, and research as Assistant Professor specializing in digital interventions to promote mental health at Yale University – notes that queer youth are more lacking in support than ever. “The most jarring outcome of the research to me was the 18% drop in the last 6 years in feeling kindness and safety in their communities given everything happening in our world,” Dr. Claudia reveals. She especially highlighted that BIPOC LBGTQ+ youth have experienced twice the decrease in kindness and safety as white non-LGBTQ+ youth. “To hear these stories and to look at the research,” she adds, “There’s a clear need and urgency to advocate.”
There are multiple forces at play perpetuating the decline in queer youth mental health. In addition to the impact of the social media age and the Covid-19 pandemic – which have taken a heavy toll on youth mental health across all demographics – the recent wave of anti-LGBTQ+ legislations have been an especially deadly force. According to the Human Rights Campaign, over 520 anti-LGBTQ+ bills – almost half of which specifically target trans and non-binary individuals – have been proposed in 2023 alone, which is a record annual high in American history. According to a tracker managed by trans journalist and advocate Eric Reed, between January and May 2023, only 122 have failed. 68 have been passed, while the remainder are in legislative limbo. These bills threaten queer youth’s right to safe education and fundamental human rights, including healthcare and access to public spaces.
In the wake of these bills, Germanotta found it especially important to revisit their 2017 survey and shine a light on the increasing magnitude of the mental health epidemic in the LGBTQ+ community. The research study found that 58% of respondents cannot afford the cost of mental health resources, making it the leading barrier to mental health resources amongst queer youth. BTWF’s 2023 Pride Campaign partners with CenterLink, the world’s largest LGBTQ+ community-based organization dedicated to strengthening and supporting organizations for youth all over the world, to provide mental health resources for LGBTQ+ youth without the means. “By partnering with CenterLink, we are able to especially shine a spotlight on areas where legislation is heavy,” says Josh Meredith, BTWF’s Chief of Staff. “These places are sanctuaries offering kids safe spaces.” Last year, BTWF raised and matched almost $250,000, distributing a total of $496,958 to 132 organizations that offer accessible care to young people across the country. “While last year the issue felt prevalent, this year that prevalence is only amplified,” Germanotta says.
LGBTQ+ advocate and BTWF Advisory Board Member Desmond Napoles, who has advocated for mental health resources for the queer community, also emphasized its increasing urgency amidst these threatening legislations. “Now more than ever, it's crucial that we foster inclusivity, education, empathy, safe spaces for dialogue, and advocacy efforts to challenge discriminatory laws and build kinder communities where everyone can access the support they need,” they share.
In addition to financial barriers, the survey also found that 41% of their respondents’ primary barrier to resources is the stigma in their communities. This prevents 45% of youth struggling with mental illnesses from speaking up or seeking resources. “My daughter says just because you can’t see it, it doesn’t mean it doesn’t exist,” Germanotta says. “Speaking from my own experience, I grew up in rural Appalachia in West Virginia right before BTWF came into existence, so when I was coming out in 2009, there were no resources in my community,” Meredith adds. “We were all going on isolated journeys, which created so much anxiety and depression, and we didn’t know how to talk to each other about it.” BTWF’s Communications Director Shadille Estepan highlights that BTWF’s resources are especially designed to cater toward this audience. “We make sure this research is accessible to young people so they can better understand how to support each other and themselves – we do that through our programs, the resources we create like the Be There Certificate, and the online storytelling forum Channel Kindness.”
For too long – and to this day –, policymakers, doctors, educators, and guardians have failed to recognize the profound urgency of the mental health crisis amongst today’s youth. There simply aren’t enough intergenerational, intercultural, or education-based conversations or resources for understanding the epidemic infiltrating and breaking the lives of future generations. And needless to say, there are even fewer for the kids who fall victim to mental illnesses, often leaving them with no choice but to take their own life and making suicide the second leading cause of death for middle schoolers, high schoolers, and college students.
What is central to mental health reform is recognizing that even more hurdles stand in the way to treatment for marginalized communities: LGBTQ+ youth are twice as likely to take their life as non-LGBTQ+ youth. This pride month, it’s critical that we take tangible action and break down the lack of access and social stigma shaping mental health in the LBGTQ+ community.
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