LGBT homeless youth need more than empathy

Photo: Screenshot from Forty to None Project promotional video. (fortytonone.org)

This weekend, headlines in LGBT publications and blogs heeded the news that while impressive progress has been made in the past two years for American gays and lesbians, there is still work to be done. Forty percent of homeless youth are LGBT kids, according to a study done by a collaboration of the Palette Fund, True Colors Fund, the newly-launched Forty to None Project and the Williams Institute titled “LGBT  Homeless Youth Provider Survey.” The issue of homeless gay youth is certainly not new, but the statistic was staggering, considering the recent evolution in public attitude toward homosexuality.

The majority of respondents said they had been rejected by their family. The rosy statistics we’ve been hearing lately of growing acceptance obviously don’t emphasize the point, but a large portion of Americans still don’t favor LGBT rights. Many are so homophobic that they actually turn their backs on their own children, which is a pretty serious line to draw and demonstrates a wider feeling of the public mood. While LGBT acceptance will surely continue to grow, there will be strong resistance from a portion of society which will never in its lifetime recognize gays as equals.

Sadly, this shocking piece of information will probably go to waste. It’s easy to play the victim, but gays are hardly saints. We’re quick to complain about horrible inequality, citing statistics like the one above. Yet instead of doing something to alleviate the problem, we blow off steam with a couple of $10 drinks on Halsted in our designer shoes. Gays could do a lot more to help themselves, but bitching is always easier.

The fact that the agencies surveyed cited lack of funds as the number one barrier for provision of services underscores this point. Five of six hurdles to improved service for LGBT youth relate to lack of funding from all levels of government, non-profits and the public.

Yes, it would be nice if our governments took a stand and made this issue a priority. But let’s be honest — America is in a partisan political mess and major issues like unemployment and uncertain economic prospects concern a far larger segment of the population. That’s not to mention the fact that the new Tea Party GOP, hellbent on austerity and righteously Christian, would hardly ever vote for increased funds for LGBT youth.

It’s time for the gay community to take responsibility for its own fate. We do need government to pass laws that treat us as equal citizens, but recent history has showed that Washington and Springfield cannot wave a magic wand to make all problems disappear. This doesn’t just apply to LGBT issues, but to the economy, the budget, war … the list goes on. In fact, government has become more of a problem in its state of disfunction.

Yet we forget that we have power, too, in the form of money. And whether it be for better or worse, money is power in America. For the LGBT community, this means solving the problems that concern us ourselves. Don’t use  gloomy studies like the one on gay homeless youth to complain about our social situation; take action by donating money to a shelter or food pantry. No one will feel sorry for us if we simply sit around and feel sorry for ourselves.

We can’t immediately change the fact that a segment of the American population thinks we’re an abomination. However, we can make a difference in the lives of the children that are effected by such bigotry. Problems are only solvable when we stop talking about them and take some action. It’s terrible that such a large percentage of the nation’s homeless youths are gay, but they will have hope if we come together as a community to solve the issue instead of trying to place blame.

Written by Matt Watson

Read the original story at Chicago Phoenix

Op-ed: Cyndi Lauper on Ending LGBT Youth Homelessness

Singer, philanthropist and activist Cyndi Lauper says it’s time to give a damn about LGBT youth homelessness

Cyndi Lauper

Five years ago, on the Christopher Street Pier in New York City, my eyes were opened.

I was doing a photo shoot for Interview magazine and thought it was important to include some gay and transgender youth to reflect my work with the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community.  My goal was to send a message of inclusion and acceptance, but what I realized after talking to these kids was just how different my vision was from what they had experienced in their own lives.

The youth on the pier that day told me story after story of exclusion, of rejection and of pain. As a mother, I can’t ever imagine throwing my child away. I can’t imagine kicking a kid out of my house. I can’t imagine rejecting a person who is, literally, a part of me.

But for the kids of the pier, that rejection wasn’t something unimaginable. It was their reality.

Anybody can end up on the street. Homelessness knows nothing of age or race or gender. It can happen to anybody.

But when statistics show that as many as 40% of the nation’s homeless youth are gay or transgender, compared to 3-5% of the overall youth population, we have to acknowledge that we’re facing a crisis. The disparity suggests that gay and transgender youth stand a much higher chance of becoming homeless because of abuse, neglect and familial rejection due to sexual orientation or gender identity that drive them to the streets.

The kids on the Christopher Street Pier that day, and the other gay and transgender youth living on the streets who make up the 40%, have done nothing wrong, other than being born the way they were supposed to be. And because of who they are, these kids have been forced to leave their homes, subjected to abuse or worse.

This week, we launch the Forty to None Project, a national program of the True Colors Fund dedicated to raising awareness around lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender youth homelessness.

And I want you to know that we’ve done our homework. The True Colors Fund started this project with a year-long assessment of the state of affairs for homeless LGBT youth. We looked at the state and level of services available to them and the public’s awareness of the issue.

We traveled the country, visiting shelters, drop-in centers, outreach programs, and advocacy organizations. We talked to community leaders, service providers, government officials and the kids themselves. We held meetings in 10 cities, from Washington to New York to San Francisco to Minneapolis. We looked for the holes in the system, and we’ve developed a five-year plan to make significant changes happen.

In our first five years, Forty to None will work to drive down the number of gay and transgender youth on the streets through a campaign that includes: education and awareness to raise the visibility of these young people and the direct service providers who work with them; advocacy at the state and federal levels; strengthening the network of services, advocates, community leaders and others working on the issue; training service providers to be more inclusive and understanding of the issues specifically affecting these kids; and empowering homeless gay and transgender youth themselves with valuable resources and information.

For two years, I’ve been telling people that it’s time to Give a Damn about a part of our society that has been swept under the rug for far too long. The Give a Damn Campaign, another program of the True Colors Fund, has been about raising awareness of the problem, especially amongst my fellow straight people. The Forty to None Project is the next step. Forty to None is about action.

As the country continues to evolve and the stigma of growing up gay finally begins to fade, it’s easy to forget that we’re still facing a crisis.

Those kids on the pier opened my eyes, and I’ve made it my mission to open everybody else’s. There’s no shortage of organizations focused on ending homelessness or addressing the needs of homeless youth—but everything we’ve learned over the past year has made it clear that runaway and homeless gay and transgender youth are being left behind. These kids, even more than others, have not received the attention, resources and support that they so desperately need.

There’s a void that needs to be filled. There are kids who are struggling and need real help, and my mission is to get them that help.  As I’ve said before—I can’t imagine any parent throwing a kid away. But when it happens, we need to make sure no kid is allowed to fall into a void. That’s why we started the Forty to None Project. Because I give a damn, and society should, too.

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Cyndi Lauper is an artist, advocate, and co-founder of the True Colors Fund, an organization that seeks to inspire and engage everyone, especially straight people, to become active participants in the advancement of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender equality and to raise awareness about and bring an end to gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender youth homelessness.

Read the original story at the Advocate