The Human Rights Campaign ( HRC ) Foundation, in partnership with the University of Connecticut ( UConn ), released the Black & African American LGBTQ Youth Report, a groundbreaking resource detailing the experiences of Black LGBTQ youth.
The report analyzes responses from nearly 1,700 young people ages 13-17 who participated in HRC's online 2017 LGBTQ Teen Survey.
The survey release comes as the HRC Foundation's sixth annual Time to THRIVE conference opens in Anaheim, California. At the conference, the report was presented by HRC President Chad Griffin on Feb. 15; additionally, it will be the topic of a panel featuring Black HRC Foundation youth ambassadors on Feb. 16.
Among other things, HRC and researchers at the University of Connecticut found that:
More than three-fourths of Black and African American LGBTQ youth who responded to the survey have heard family members say negative things about LGBTQ people, and nearly half have been taunted or mocked by family for being LGBTQ;
Eighty percent "usually" feel depressed, down, worried, nervous or panicked. Nearly half feel critical of their LGBTQ identities; and
Sixty-three percent of Black and African-American transgender and gender-expansive youth try to avoid using the restroom during the school day.
In addition to conference attendees, these findings will inform a variety of HRC Foundation programs for youth and youth-serving professionals, including the HRC Foundation's HBCU Program, Welcoming Schools and All Children-All Families programs.
The report is at www.hrc.org/resources/black-and-african-american-lgbtq-youth-report .