A study of more than 10,000 LGBT youth ages 13-17 found that bisexual teens face more challenges coming out and gaining acceptance than their lesbian and gay peers.
The Human Rights Campaign Foundation released its groundbreaking report, "Supporting and Caring for Our Bisexual Youth," during Bisexual Awareness Week, which took place in September.
The findings are based on one of the largest surveys focused on LGBT youth ever conducted.
According to the report, of the 10,030 teens surveyed, 40 percent of them identified as bisexual. The majority of teens identifying as bisexual are female.
In comparison with non-LGBT youth, bisexual teens experience a large disparity in happiness, harassment and adult support.
Only 5 percent of bisexual youth reported being "very happy," compared to 23 percent of non-LGBT youth.
Additionally, nearly a third of bisexual young people said they had been 'frequently or often' harassed or called names at school, compared to 9 percent of non-LGBT youth who reported similar mistreatment.
"Bisexual teen girls provided troubling descriptions of sexual harassment, an unfortunate early indicator of just how dangerous stereotyping is to our safety," said Faith Cheltenham, president of BiNet USA. "Statistics show that these threats continue for adult bi women, who, during their lifetimes, report alarmingly high rates of rape, physical violence and stalking by an intimate partner."
Bisexual teens are also much less likely to have an adult they can turn to for support at home, only 44 percent compared with 79 percent of non-LGBT youth.
The survey also found bisexual youth struggle with acceptance of their sexual identity from their peers and others.
"It hurts deeply when young people are told they are not legitimate, and, unfortunately, that is what many bisexual youth are hearing from their family and friends," said Ellen Kahn, director of the HRC Foundation's Children, Youth & Families Program.
The increased lack of acceptance often causes them to be less connected to the greater LGBT community and its services.
"Those who work with youth know how important it is for their success to have at least one person they can turn to when they are struggling with their lives," said Ellyn Ruthstrom, president of the Bisexual Resource Center. "This study sadly indicates that bi youth are not accessing support services—in fact, most of them don't even know that there are services available to them."
The report found bisexual youth were slightly less likely than gay and lesbian youth to know whether their state government, doctors or local businesses were accepting of LGBT people.
Bisexual youth have unique needs and the survey findings indicate those needs are not being met, including from within the LGBT community and its organizations.
The HRC Foundation released the report in partnership with the Bisexual Resource Center, BiNet USA, and the Bisexual Organizing Project. HRC Foundation, the educational arm of the Human Rights Campaign commissioned the study in 2012.
The organizations hope the study's conclusions will be eye opening and lead to greater support, including from within the larger LGBT community.
"We have a responsibility to educate ourselves and to open the doors for young bisexual people to live openly, and to thrive," Kahn said. "We adults must step up and change the conversation about bisexuality, and accept and embrace our bisexual youth."
The Supporting and Caring For Our Bisexual Youth report can be found at www.hrc.org/youth/supporting-and-caring-for-our-bisexual-youth .
