The bill H.R. 1379 Protecting LGBTQ Youth Act would help to prevent and treat child abuse in the LGBTQ community. This bill will include giving grants for prevention services and training child-welfare professionals, on top of updating reporting requirements.
Research shows that LGBTQ youth and gender nonconforming youth are more likely to experience most types of abuse and to have poly-victimization. Transgender youth in particular had significantly high rates of abuse and poly-victimization. LGBTQ youth are also significantly more likely to end up in foster care. One study indicated that 30% of LGBTQ youth in the foster care system report physical violence. Another study showed that 40% of homeless youth were LGBTQ. More than half of these youth choose to be homeless over foster care because they felt safer on the streets.
LGBTQ youth are high risk for experiencing sexual abuse. Lesbians and bisexual youth are more likely to be sexually harassed and experience sexual violence by their peers than heterosexual counterparts, with 72% reporting sexual harassment. Gay and bisexual men experience twice as much sexual violence then heterosexual men. Trans individuals experience significantly high rates of sexual abuse, 64% report experiencing sexual assault.
This makes LGBTQ high risk for mental illness and other health issues later in life. The H.R. 1379 Protecting LGBTQ Youth Act could help prevent this. Contact your Representative about supporting H.R. 1379 today!