LGBT youth

The Nate Berkus Show and openly gay singer, Chely Wright, revealed a brand new youth lounge at YES, a GLBT community center in NYC.

Wright said, "I am from a small town in Kansas, I scoured my little town looking for anyone else like me, and I couldn't find anyone. I hit my rock bottom..." In explaining one reason for coming out, she said, "I couldn't stand the thought of somebody feeling like there wasn't somebody else like him or like her."

The Journal of Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Nursing published a study titled "Family Acceptance in Adolescence and the Health of LGBT Young Adults." The study shows that specific parental and caregiver behaviors - such as advocating for their children when they are mistreated because of their sexual orientation or supporting their gender expression - protect against depression, substance abuse, suicidal thoughts and suicide attempts in early adulthood.

Future dad, James Neiley, recently gave testimony to the Vermont Senate Judiciary Committee to support marriage equality in Vermont.

Neiley, a 17-year-old student at Champlain Valley Union High School, told committee members of his own difficulty coming out as a gay teenager and how the lack of marriage rights played into his own fears that he was less of a person than his straight counterparts.

Almost 90% of LGBT students report being verbally harassed at school because of their sexual orientation. These teens experience homophobic harassment throughout the school day, creating an unsafe atmosphere. Remarks such as “that’s so gay” are the most commonly heard. The Ad Council believes these slurs are often unintentional. Most do not recognize the consequences, but the casual use of this language often carries over into more overt harassment.

Anne Hart, from Southern Mamas blog, wrote a great piece for the Savannah Morning News about a group of young people who are reaching out to each other for support.