Issues in the lgbtq community

LGBTQ Rights

The ACLU has a long history of defending the LGBTQ community. We brought our first LGBTQ rights case in Founded in , the Jon L. Stryker and Slobodan Randjelović LGBTQ & HIV Proposal brings more LGBTQ rights cases and advocacy initiatives than any other national organization does and has been counsel in seven of the nine LGBTQ rights cases that the U.S. Supreme Court has decided. With our contact into the courts and legislatures of every state, there is no other organization that can match our write down of making progress both in the courts of statute and in the court of common opinion.

The ACLU’s current priorities are to end discrimination, harassment and violence toward transgender people, to close gaps in our federal and state civil rights laws, to stop protections against discrimination from being undermined by a license to discriminate, and to protect LGBTQ people in and from the criminal legal system.

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For non-LGBTQ issues, please contact your local ACLU affiliate.

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Mental health support if you're lesbian, gay, multi-attracted or trans (LGBTQ+)

Mental health problems such as depression or self-harm can affect any of us, but they're more usual among people who are lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans (LGBTQ+).

This may be linked to LGBTQ+ people's experience of discrimination, homophobia or transphobia, bullying, social isolation, or rejection because of their sexuality.

Other things, such as their age, religion, where they inhabit , and their ethnicity can append extra complications to an already difficult situation.

How talking therapy can help

It might not be easy, but getting help with issues you're struggling to deal with on your own is one of the most important things you can do.

Talking with a therapist who's trained to serve with LGBTQ+ people may help with issues such as:

  • difficulty accepting your sexual orientation
  • coping with other people's reactions to your sexuality
  • feeling your body does not reflect your true gender (gender dysphoria)
  • transitioning
  • low self-esteem
  • self-harm
  • suicidal thoughts
  • depression
  • coping with bullying

    LGBTQ People’s Experiences of Workplace Discrimination and Harassment

    Executive Summary

    Over 8 million workers in the U.S. identify as ment discrimination and harassment based on sexual orientation and gender identity own been widely research has found that LGBTQ people continue to face mistreatment in the workplace,even after the U.S. Supreme Court held in that discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity is prohibited by Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of Experiences of workplace discrimination and harassment negatively impact employees’ health and well-being, as successfully as their job pledge, satisfaction, and productivity. These primary effects can, in turn, result in higher costs and other negative outcomes for employers.

    This inform examines experiences of discrimination and harassment against LGBTQ employees using a survey of 1, LGBTQ adults in the workforce conducted in the summer of It is based on a similar study published by the Williams Institute in This report examines the lifetime, five-year, and past-year workplace experiences of LGBTQ employee

    Why Does the LGBTQIA+ Group Suffer from Poor Mental Health at Higher Rates?

    Everyone has a sexual orientation and gender identity, but people who determine as part of the Woman-loving woman, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, Questioning, Intersex, Asexual (LGBTQIA+) community are at higher mental health exposure compared to others. According to the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI), "LGB adults are more than twice as likely as heterosexual adults to exposure a mental health condition. Transsexual individuals are nearly four times as likely as cisgender individuals to experience a mental health condition". Many factors aside, this is because many people recognizing as LGBTQIA+ face discrimination, family rejection, harassment, and fear of violence.

    "Like with any identity, feeling different—or worse, unaccepted as you are—is a significant risk factor for mental health struggles," says Anna Docherty, PhD, LP, assistant professor of psychiatry at Huntsman Mental Health Institute. "The fact is, most of us exposure some significant anxiety or depression in our lifetimes, and we