To many, gay rights feels like a fight of the past. The AIDS crisis is no longer a headline, and more people in the U.S. now support gay marriage than oppose it. Yet, there are laws in this country that still mandate that teachers actively portray LGBTQ+ (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender or Queer) people in a negative or inaccurate way.

Seven states have laws prohibiting the “promotion of homosexuality.” Often referred to  as “no promo homo” laws, they expressly forbid health/sex education teachers from discussing lesbian, gay, or bisexual people or topics in a positive light, if at all.

These laws prevent young LGBTQ+ people from learning critical information about their health, and also stigmatizes LGBTQ+ students by providing them with false, misleading, or incomplete information.

Youth from “highly rejecting” environments are 8 times more likely to attempt suicide than others. Though only 7 percent of all youth are LGBTQ, 40 percent of homeless youth are LGBTQ+.

Mobilizing Resources for LGBTQ+ Youth

LGBTQ+ youth should grow up feeling safe to be who they really are. In 2017, a group of young adults in San Francisco formed wayOUT, a nonprofit that enables social entrepreneurs to launch programs supporting LGBTQ+ youth in their communities.

Each organization must serve a specific, marginalized LGBTQ+ population with at least 50 youth and provide services to their communities that have a measurable impact on the health and well-being of that population. WayOUT supports organizations in three ways:

  • Direct contributions to highly local organizations with proven impact: In 2017, wayOUT raised $127,000 for the Magic City Acceptance Center in Birmingham, AL to launch their Homeless LGBTQ Youth Program, which recently rolled out its training program to two homes. This year, the San Francisco chapter will be supporting TimeOut Youth, and LGBTQ+ Youth Center in Charlotte, NC.  Time Out Youth’s goal is to build a 10-bed shelter for homeless LGBTQ+ youth.
  • Education and training: Each local organization receives direct training for its leadership, resources (e.g., development strategies), and may receive strategic planning engagements.
  • Network of social leaders: wayOUT brings together social entrepreneurs from across the country to surface and refine strategies for LGBTQ+ youth, to share learnings and best practices, and to coach and mentor each other as they create sustainable change within their communities.
How Donors Can Get Involved:
  • Support wayOUT’s mission to start 20 wayOUT chapters by 2027. Each city chapter will partner with local LGBTQ+ youth centers across America. By 2027, wayOUT aims to support 50 organizations.
  • Provide funding to organizations addressing the needs of LGBTQ+ youth. The True Colors Fund is dedicated to eradicating youth homeless across the LGBTQ+ community and The Trevor Project provides crisis intervention and suicide prevention services for LGBTQ+ youth.
  • Gain a deeper understanding of LQBTQ+ youth homelessness with this Voices of Youth Count report.