Latest news with #TrevorProject
CBS News
10 hours ago
- Health
- CBS News
NYC-based organizations offer support for LGBTQ+ youth as suicide hotline option is terminated
New York City-based organizations are highlighting the need for resources for LGBTQ+ residents after the Trump administration announced it will end LGBTQ+ youth suicide prevention services in a few weeks. The Trevor Project has been helping LGBTQ+ youth for decades and started providing specialized support for LGBTQ+ callers to the 988 National Suicide Prevention Hotline in 2022, but it has received a stop work order effective July 17. The federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration said LGBTQ+ callers can still rely on hotline's general services, but advocates say this will greatly impact LGBTQ+ youth. "There's someone here to help you" "LGBTQ+ youth in our country are experiencing a mental health crisis," said Mark Henson, the Trevor Project's interim vice president of advocacy and government affairs. "That's the reason why these services were set up, so that tailored care can be available to help keep them alive." According to the nonprofit organization, 39% of LGBTQ+ young New Yorkers seriously considered suicide in the past year, and 12% attempted it. A recent study also revealed LGBTQ+ youth are four times more likely to attempt suicide compared to their peers. "If this program goes away, the question is will they feel comfortable reaching out?" Henson said. The Trevor Project says it will continue to provide crisis services through its own hotline, but it will be a lot harder. Henson has a message for LGBTQ+ youth struggling with mental health. "You deserve the right for support, and there's someone here to help you," he said. For more information on the services offered by the Trevor Project, visit Unique services available for LGBTQ+ youth in NYC The Queens Community House in Forest Hills has unique services specifically for LGBTQ+ youth, including a drop-in center. "We see that those individuals often feel more welcome and safe in dedicated programming and thrive there," Executive Director Ben Thomases said. "They know they're gonna be understood. They know that people are going to see them for who they are." Thomases said the organization is also doing work in schools throughout the borough to make that environment more welcoming, as well. For more information, visit Jewish Queer Youth (JQY) offers support to young Jewish New Yorkers struggling to find acceptance in their communities. "Cutting services for LGBTQ youth through the 988 Suicide and Crisis Hotline will really have devastating and deadly consequences," Executive Director Rachael Fried said. "The fact that it exists, it sends a message that queer youth actually matter." There's still a few weeks before the youth service is eliminated. Advocates are petitioning and pushing for lawmakers to step in. In May, more than 100 House members signed a letter urging the health department to preserve the LGBTQ+ option, and seven senators signed a similar letter. If you or someone you know needs help, you can call or text 988 to speak with a trained, caring counselor 24 hours a day, seven days a week. You can also chat online with a counselor at
Chicago Tribune
a day ago
- Politics
- Chicago Tribune
Heidi Stevens: Shutting down hotline services for LGBTQ+ youth is malice by Trump administration
There's cost-cutting, and then there's cruelty. President Donald Trump's administration appears determined to blur that line to the point of indistinction, using the former, over and over, to justify the latter. The decision to abruptly shut down the LGBTQ+ portion of a youth suicide and crisis hotline — a service that has no doubt saved countless lives — is the latest example. The Trevor Project, a nonprofit focused on suicide prevention for LGBTQ+ youth, received a stop work order, effective July 17, for the crisis services it provides to the national 988 suicide and crisis hotline. Since 2022, the group has provided crisis services to LGBTQ+ youth who contact the 988 Lifeline by offering them the option of being connected to counselors trained specifically in mental health for individuals who identify as LGBTQ+. After July 17, the 988 Lifeline will remain in place, but will no longer provide specialized LGBTQ+ crisis counseling. A White House spokesman told the New York Times that the specialized portion of the hotline had 'run out of congressionally directed funding,' and continuing to fund it would jeopardize the entire operation. 'This is devastating, to say the least,' the Trevor Project wrote in a statement. 'Suicide prevention is about people, not politics. The administration's decision to remove a bipartisan, evidence-based service that has effectively supported a high-risk group of young people through their darkest moments is incomprehensible.' Trevor Project counselors helped about 500,000 people in 2024, 231,000 of whom came through the 988 line, Zach Eisenstein, a spokesman for the organization, told The New York Times. Trevor Project is encouraging people to visit to help fight the decision, which Congress could, in theory, reverse. It's unconscionable that it's come to this. It's unconscionable that the physical, mental and emotional health of young people is on the chopping block because of who they are and who they love. It's unconscionable that our leaders, elected to serve and protect us, are instead finding new ways, daily, to degrade our humanity. I called my friend and former podcast partner John Duffy, a clinical therapist who specializes in adolescent mental health, to get his take on the hotline shutdown. I wanted to hear from someone whose funding isn't being cut, but who is nonetheless on the front lines of suicide prevention. I trust Duffy like no other on this topic — for his wise and enormous heart, for his evidence-based approach to helping young people and because he lost his own brother to suicide in 2001. He is, in a word, heartbroken. 'By the time a kid feels inclined to call a hotline,' Duffy said, 'they are hopeless and they don't feel understood. If you are in the LGBTQ community and you feel hopeless and misunderstood, you don't have the luxury of shopping around. You need someone on that line who understands you now.' LGBTQ+ youth often face family rejection, cultural rejection, discrimination, fear of personal violence, losing their civil rights — issues that call for an intentional, specified approach to care, Duffy said. 'Their mental health is a very delicate space,' he said. 'They need and deserve people who can handle that space with care. And to take that away when they're in a crisis state? It's lethal.' Duffy said he began hearing from his clients as soon as the order made headlines. 'It feels to them like things are just going to get worse,' he said. 'They feel like they're being targeted directly. They feel like they're not going to have the support they need. They feel hated by massive groups of people just by virtue of who they are.' Often, he said, his LGBTQ+ clients are struggling to accept themselves even as they're struggling for acceptance from the people they know and love. 'Many of them aren't comfortable with the idea of being L, G, B, T or Q,' he said. 'It's confusing and perplexing to them, even as they're trying to make other people comfortable with it. And the chance that they reach out in crisis and they hang up feeling unheard and misunderstood? The chance that their suicidal ideation remains, or they make a move to take their lives? That all just increased exponentially.' There is zero defense for this. Zero. Straight kids are impacted by the decision as well, Duffy said. They worry about their LGBTQ+ friends. They wonder what kind of world they're graduating into, growing into, and maybe, one day, bringing their own kids into. Hope feels hard for them to come by, he said. 'It's another indication of the depletion of the humanity of our systems,' he said. And for what? For cost-cutting? I don't buy it. The cruelty is the point. And it's costing us dearly.
Time of India
a day ago
- Entertainment
- Time of India
Dwyane Wade's wife Gabrielle Union breaks silence as LGBTQ+ lifeline faces shutdown
(Image Source - Getty Images) Hollywood actress and producer Gabrielle Union has drawn attention to a worrying development involving LGBTQ+ mental health services in the United States. On June 19, Union shared an Instagram Story highlighting a post about the upcoming shutdown of the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline's LGBTQ+ youth option, scheduled for July 17, under the Trump administration. Gabrielle Union raises red flag on upcoming LGBTQ+ hotline shutdown On June 19, Gabrielle Union reposted a message from Anthony 'Kaz' (@lqvekanthony) on her Instagram story. Kaz had shared a post on X (formerly Twitter) warning that the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline's LGBTQ+ support line (Press 3) will be shut down on July 17, 2025, by the Trump administration. In his post, Kaz wrote, 'The Trevor Project can be reached directly at 1‑866‑488‑7386, even when this is going to be gone. Please share to possibly save someone's life.' Gabrielle Union didn't add extra words but her repost helped alert many people. She made sure her followers, many of them young and active, saw it. Even without a caption, her share made a big impact. Gabrielle Union and Dwyane Wade stand by LGBTQ+ youth This is not the first time Gabrielle Union has risen for the LGBTQ+ community. In fact, it is something she does often - quiet, firm and with love. Alongside her husband, former NBA star Dwyane Wade, Gabrielle has always made it clear: Their support for their daughter, Zaya Wade, who came out as transgender in 2020, is unconditional. (Image Source - @gabunion) Gabrielle doesn't just speak when it's easy. She uses her voice when she matters the most. Whether it is sharing stories, showing on events, or supporting organizations such as Trevor Projects, she shows up for those who are often unheard. She spoke openly about mental health, identity, breed and belonging. She listens, she learns, and she picks up people. And this is what he did again - this time with a single Instagram story. By resharing Kaz's post about the shutdown of the 988 LGBTQ+ lifeline, she didn't add extra words. She didn't need to. Her decision to pass along that message was its own kind of call to action a way of telling her millions of followers: don't look away. Stay alert. Help if you can. And in that one small post, she reminded people of something big: The Trevor Project's direct line, 1‑866‑488‑7386, is still active. Even if part of the system goes quiet, help is still out there. Also Read: Lonzo Ball was supposed to revive the Los Angeles Lakers but something went wrong Gabrielle Union didn't need to make a statement. Her care, her track record, and her quiet urgency said everything. Game On Season 1 kicks off with Sakshi Malik's inspiring story. Watch Episode 1 here
Global News
2 days ago
- Health
- Global News
U.S suicide prevention hotline cutting service for 2SLGBTQ+ youth
The 988 National Suicide & Crisis Lifeline will stop providing tailored support options to LGBTQ+ youth and young adults on July 17, according to a statement on a federal agency's website. The decision preempts the Trump administration's 2026 budget proposal to cut funding for 988's LGBTQ+ youth and young adult services, and is raising alarm bells among LGBTQ+ advocates. Federal data shows the LGBTQ+ youth program has served nearly 1.3 million callers since it started in September 2022. The services were accessible under the 'Press 3' option on the phone or by replying 'PRIDE' via text. Story continues below advertisement The decision was was made to 'no longer silo' the services and 'to focus on serving all help seekers, including those previously served through the Press 3 option,' the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) said in a statement dated Tuesday on its website. Get daily National news Get the day's top news, political, economic, and current affairs headlines, delivered to your inbox once a day. Sign up for daily National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy News of the LGBTQ+ service shutting down comes as the U.S. Supreme Court upheld Tennessee's ban on gender-affirming care for transgender minors on Wednesday. The Trevor Project said it received official notice Tuesday that the program was ending. The nonprofit is one of seven centres that provides 988 crisis support services for LGBTQ+ people, and serves nearly half of the people who contact the lifeline. 'Suicide prevention is about people, not politics,' Trevor Project CEO Jaymes Black said in a statement Wednesday. 'The administration's decision to remove a bipartisan, evidence-based service that has effectively supported a high-risk group of young people through their darkest moments is incomprehensible.' In its statement on the 988 decision, SAMHSA referred to the 'LGB+ youth services.' Black called the omission of the 'T' representing transgender people 'callous.' 'Transgender people can never, and will never, be erased,' he said. The Trevor Project will continue to run its 24/7 mental health support services, as will other organizations, and leaders of 988 say the hotline will serve anyone who calls with compassion. Story continues below advertisement The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said there were 49,300 suicides in 2023 — about the highest level in the nation's history, based on preliminary data. Studies have shown that LGBTQ+ youth are at higher risk of suicide, including a 2024 analysis by the CDC that found 26 per cent of transgender and gender-questioning students attempted suicide in the past year. That's compared with 5 per cent of cisgender male and 11 per cent of cisgender female students. Young transgender people flooded crisis hotlines with calls after President Donald Trump was re-elected. Trump made anti-transgender themes central to his campaign and has since rolled back many civil rights protections and access to gender-affirming care. Trump signed the National Suicide Hotline Designation Act of 2020 into law in October 2020. The specific 988 subprogram for LGBTQ+ youth cost $33 million in fiscal year 2024, according to SAMHSA, and as of June 2025, more than $33 million has been spent on the services. The Trump administration's 2026 budget proposal called for keeping 988's total budget at $520 million, even while eliminating the LGBTQ+ services. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. wants to wrap SAMHSA and other agencies into a new HHS office called the Administration for a Healthy America, where it would coexist with employees from other agencies responsible for chemical exposures and work-related injuries.
BBC News
2 days ago
- Health
- BBC News
Trump administration ends LGBT youth option on US suicide hotline
A part of a US national suicide prevention hotline that caters for LGBT young people says it will soon close, after the Trump administration cut its administration has accused the service of "radical gender ideology". It says it will still fund the wider 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline - of which the LGBT youth option is one part - and that all callers will receive "compassion and help".The Trevor Project, an organisation that helped to run the LGBT option, said the decision would have a harmful impact on vulnerable young people. "Suicide prevention is about people, not politics," said Jaymes Black, the organisation's CEO. He said his service had been told to close within 30 days."The administration's decision to remove a bipartisan, evidence-based service that has effectively supported a high-risk group of young people through their darkest moments is incomprehensible," Mr Black decision comes during international Pride Month, which celebrates LGBT culture and news also arrived ahead of a US Supreme Court decision on Tuesday that upheld the state of Tennessee's ban on transition-related healthcare for minors who identify as general 988 Lifeline offers free mental health support via call, text, or chat. It is funded by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), a subsidiary of the US Health and Human Services Agency (HHS). Currently, LGBT young people can select option 3 from a call menu in order to connect with the changes, the remaining 988 Lifeline services would "focus on serving all help seekers", including those who previously chose to access LGBT youth services, SAMHSA said. But the hotline would "no longer silo LGB+ youth services", SAMHSA wrote in a statement, omitting the "T" that refers to transgender people in the LGBT at HHS proposed cutting the 988 Lifeline's LGBT youth services last a statement to NBC News at the time, an HHS spokesperson described the option as a "chat service where children are encouraged to embrace radical gender ideology by 'counselors' without consent or knowledge of their parents". Supreme Court upholds Tennessee ban on gender transition care for minors Legislation passed in 2020 by the US Congress required the 988 Lifeline to provide services and staff specifically for LGBT people as well as other at-risk groups like rural and Native legislation noted that LGBT youth were "more than 4 times more likely to contemplate suicide than their peers, with 1 in 5 LGBT youth and more than 1 in 3 transgender youth reporting attempting suicide".The law received bipartisan support - including from Donald Trump, who was then serving his first presidential term, and signed the bill into to the 988 Lifeline website, LGBT communities are "disproportionately at risk for suicide and other mental health struggles due to historic and ongoing structural violence."The Trevor Project began providing its services through the 988 Lifeline in 2022. In 2024, it served more than 231,000 crisis contacts, the organisation said in a statement. It says it will continue to provide its own independent services. US Supreme Court allows Trump to enforce transgender military banIn the US, DEI is under attack. But under a different name, it might live on The decision to eliminate the 988 Lifeline's designated LGBT youth option comes amid Trump's push to curtail services, support, and access for transgender people across the federal government. He has pushed to end diversity, equity, and inclusion policies (DEI) within the federal government, arguing that such programmes are themselves president has also ordered the removal of transgender servicemembers from the US military and issued an executive order that the US would only recognise two sexes – male and US Department of State also announced it would no longer allow applicants to choose "X" as their gender on US passports. Instead, transgender individuals must choose "male" or "female" corresponding to their sex assigned at birth. If you are suffering distress or despair and need support, you could speak to a health professional, or an organisation that offers support. Details of help available in many countries can be found at Befrienders Worldwide. the UK a list of organisations that can help is available at
