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Report: LGBT Youth Get Harassed, Feel They Don't Fit In
A new report released in Los Angeles by the Human Rights Campaign looked at the experiences of more than 10,000 youth
Michelle Valles
The Human Rights Campaign surveyed more than 10,000 teens about growing up lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender in America. It is the largest known survey of this kind and revealed LGBT youth have markedly different experiences than their "straight" counterparts. Michelle Valles reports for the NBC4 News at 5 p.m. on June 7, 2012.
A landmark study released by gay-rights advocates Thursday showed that those who grow up with gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender identities have markedly different experiences of childhood than "straight" youth.
"Growing Up LGBT in America," a survey of 10,000 respondents ages 13 to 17, was released by the Human Rights Campaign, a Washington, D.C.-based group that held a press conference in HollywoodThursday.
The report showed that more than half of LGBT youth have been harassed and nearly half feel they don't "fit in."
Human Rights Campaign President Chad Griffin said the report should be "a call to action for all of us."
He was joined at the press conference at the LA Gay & Lesbian Center by Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, who expressed support.
"These kids have a right to go to school and not be harassed. They have a right to love who they want. They have a right to get married, if they want," Villaraigosa said.
LA's City Hall is set to be bathed in lavender light during evenings in June to honor Gay Pride Month.
According to the Human Rights Campaign, the key findings of the report include:
- 54 percent of LGBT youth say they have been verbally harassed and called names involving anti-gay slurs
- 47 percent of LGBT youth say they do not “fit in” in their community, compared to 16 percent of straight youth say that
- 37 percent of LGBT youth describe themselves as happy, compared to 67 percent of straight youth
- 83 percent of LGBT youth believe they will be happy eventually, but only 49 percent believe they will be happy if they stay in their hometown
- Six in 10 LGBT youth say their family is accepting of LGBT people, while a third say their family is not
The figures showed LGBT youth in California found life was a little easier, according to an analysis from the Los Angeles Times.
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