The Virtues Of Visibility : Youtube And Lgbt Youth

The mental health of individuals in the LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgendered) community is something that is a serious problem. For most of the history of the United States and many different parts of the world LGBT people faced much persecution and in some cases even death. This constant fear of discovery and the pressure that one feels on oneself when “in the closet” can lead to major mental distress. Research has shown that people who identify as LGBT are twice as likely to develop lifetime mood and anxiety disorders (Bostwick 468). This is extremely noticeable the past couple years in the suicides of bullied teens on the basis of sexual identity and expression. The stigma on simply being perceived as LGBT is strong enough to

The young people of the LGBT community do in fact have increased risks when it comes to their mental health. For example: Compared to homeless youth that identify as heterosexual, LGBT adolescents are more likely to have major depressive episodes (41.3% vs. 28.5%), suicidal thoughts (73% vs. 53.2%), at least one suicide attempt (57.1% vs. 33.7%), and posttraumatic stress disorder (47.6% vs. 33.4%) (Keuroghlian, A. S., Shtasel, D., & Bassuk, E. L., 2014). It is also shown that homeless youth who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender, ranging from 13 to 21 years of age are more apt than youth who identify as heterosexual to experience and report symptoms of depression and use street drugs such as, methamphetamines, cocaine and or crack (Keuroghlian, A. S., Shtasel, D., & Bassuk, E. L., 2014).

The Lesbian, Gay, Bi, and Transgendered (LGBT) youth population is one of the most vulnerable groups in our community. Being gay does not lead to risky behaviors or bad decision making, rather, societal stigma and discrimination can lead LGBT youth to seek emotional outlets. Today’s society has improved immensely towards the LGBT community, although it has not always been this way. Society can affect a person in shocking ways, influencing one’s unhealthy and unsafe physical and mental behaviors. This current vulnerable population deserves a voice and the simplicity of someone listening to them in order for both sides, accepting and non-accepting, to find a common ground and settle the violence.

The representation of LGBTQ youth in the media is just sickening and makes many of the youth of America hate themselves, just by the way they’re portrayed. They make it seem like you’re supposed to act a certain way or be a certain way to be accepted. Or they make it seem like certain sexualities and genders do not even exist. The way media portrays everything on this topic is just completely inaccurate. The worst part of it all is the fact that a lot of people, queer or not, believe it and think that it’s a proper and accurate representation. Queer people feel pressured into acting a certain way or else they’re not really queer and straight people feel the need to force these stereotypes on those that are queer.

Growing up as a Catholic, Puerto Rican gay boy in the 90s and early 2000s, I struggled to discover my queer identity as well as queer representation in the media I consumed. Being gay was something that was never discussed. If it was brought up, it was usually in hushed tones (I remember being introduced to my uncle 's close 'friend ' each holiday) or as something negative (I still remember the sting of being called a faggot in elementary school). This reflected exactly how homosexuality was portrayed in media at the time. Queer characters and homosexuality were at best portrayed in codified, 'blink-and-you 'll-miss it ' labels and affectations, or at worst, something to laugh at, pity or even hate. As someone who still regularly watches reads comics, watches Saturday morning cartoons and plays video games, it is so exciting to discover the lengths of progress that has been made in queer representation in all ages media. In this paper I hope to detail the highs and lows of LGBTQ representation in all ages media and highlight the impact of media representation.

Gay teens have significantly higher rates of both attempts and thoughts of suicide. In his study on gay teen suicide, Patrick Healy concluded that gay teens are "five times more likely to attempt suicide than their heterosexual peers"(2001). As reported in "Lesbian News", "these youth account for 35% of the American population and 15% of all suicide deaths"(Ocamb 2001). Of the 4,000 students who were surveyed in 1997, 40 percent out of the 10 percent of high school students who attempted suicide were gay. For many gay teens their everyday existence can cause severe psychological damage. When they are at school they are taunted and

Classrooms, consisting of 9th-through-12th graders from racially and ethnically diverse backgrounds, were randomly sampled to complete the Boston Youth Survey. The correlation research study excluded schools that served adults, previously incarcerated students, suspended students, and severely disabled students to minimize introduction of confounding variables. Participants in the Boston Youth Survey (BYS) were asked specifically with regards to their individual-level sexual orientation and suicidal ideation and attempts among other questions. Of the 2725 individuals sampled, 1878 completed the survey and were asked, on the sexual orientation item in the BYS questionnaire, to identify themselves with 1 of 6 categories that best described themselves: (1) completely heterosexual, (2) mostly heterosexual, (3) bisexual, (4) mostly homosexual, (5) completely homosexual (i.e., gay or lesbian), or (6) not sure. Respondents were then asked explicitly "Have you seriously considered attempting suicide?" and "Have you actually attempted suicide? [within the 12 months preceding survey administration]" with yes and no response options for those questions (Duncan & Hatzenbuehler, 2014). To test their hypothesis, researchers then obtained LGBT hate crimes data with help from the Boston Police Department Community Disorders Unit and linked the community information to

The article "Gay Teens Are at Risk," was written by Paula Schleis and Kim Hone-McMahan and was published in 2004 in Teens at Risk. This article describes how society is forcing the adolescents in the LGBT community into depression and causing them to attempt suicide. According to the article, gay teens risk loosing friends and loved ones if they 'come out of the closet' and thus either try to fruitlessly hide their sexuality or attempt suicide. Additionally, the article states that one-third of teen suicides are committed by homosexuals because of homophobia. With this article's use of pathos and heart-string-pulling language gain empathy and attention from their readers. Though neither authors have a personal background or connection to the

LGBTQ youth in particular are at high risk for suicide attempts and completions. In the largest national survey of transgender adults to date,

And about 30 percent of all accomplished suicides have been linked in some way to a sexual identity crisis problem. Children and young adults who also fall into the gay, bisexual, lesbian or transgendered identity groups report being five times as more likely to miss or neglect school for the reason that they feel insecure and nervous after being bullied due to their sexual orientation and preference. About 28 percent of the youths in the LGBT community feel forced to stop going to school

16-year-old Skylar Lee took his life in September 28, 2015. Up until his death, the transgender boy battled depression, identity issues while advocating for LGBT+ rights. He was respected activist that touched many lives, both in his personal life and outside of it. In a video Lee recorded, he talked about the staggering amount of suicides in LGBT+ youth and, more specifically, transgender teens. He proposed an idea to fix the issue. Instead of hoping that the affected person will get better, we need to invest in resources to better the lives of LGBT+ children. We must find ways to combat the challenges that keep marginalized groups from succeeding. Whether it is changing the lesson plans of health classes or giving people pamphlets of links

Sadly, stigmas stand as the barrier that separates persons at risk from mental health professionals who through either therapy, medication or a combination of both can change suicide contemplations. However, after a review of the current data, it indicates there is a year to year increase in the reported incidences of suicides, which in turn suggest more work is needed to reverse this pattern (Smith, Saisan, & Segal, 2016). In the text to follow, we will examine additional data on suicides in the U.S. as it relates to age, race, and gender, as well as an examination of suicide statistics for the state of Texas.

The stigma that those in the community are viewed as “child molesters” and inherently predatory only manages to perpetuate negative stereotypes. Instead of attempting to classify and treat homosexuality as a mental disorder, what should be focused on is the effect such a stigmatization could have on the patient. In fact, LGBT+ youth are at a much higher risk of suicide, depression, and anxiety. According to a study entitled: Sex of Sexual Contacts, and Health-Risk Behaviors Among Students in Grades 9-12: Youth Risk Behavior Surveillance, 80% more of those who experience same sex attraction and 100% more of bisexual people have attempted suicide when compared to heterosexuals. This ostracization is often looked over and instead placed on the individual's sexuality as means for causation, when in it is in fact the source. Because of this, those who are subjected to this “fundamental view that homosexuality and bisexuality indicate or are automatically associated with mental disturbance or dysfunction,” they are lead to internalize as much (Association,

Media and its representation of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transsexual (LGBT) themes has been prevalent throughout time. According to the collections of studies and stories by Meem, Mitchell and Jonathan (2010) concerning LGBT individuals, it is important to represent such themes because it is able to enlighten people on how our society as a whole, has become dynamic. The Media can be seen as a “central source” where negative perceptions can be created. As a result, stereotypes can be either created or perpetuated about this group, negative or otherwise. Media as a medium, therefore, is an extremely powerful tool in our society, and can be used to change or create people 's perceptions about this particular segment of our world (LGBT).

Media is an important agent in our society. It shapes ideas and creates movements that cultivate our country. It can do something as little as providing an entertaining element in our lives to something as big as starting a revolution. Throughout history media has played an integral role in the progression in ideas that were considered socially deviant. From war propaganda to abortion, media has provided a method of getting the word out. Media has particularly had an impact on the LGBTQ community. It has allowed the voices of LGBTQs everywhere to be heard and not ignored. The two main forms of media that have had an impact on the LGBTQ community are film and literature. These two forms are broadly used as representation of many issues because of the appeal it has to an audience. However, for the LGBTQ community it provides much more. While both gay literature and film combat the oppression of the LGBTQ community by illuminating their voices in society, Film gives a less ambiguous portrait of the LGBTQ life while literature shows added expression.