Today is Spirit Day, an anti-bullying campaign to support LGBTQ youth. According to national studies, lesbian, gay and bisexual kids are three to five times more likely to attempt suicide. ?And ?the picture is even more dire for transgender youth -- a?s many as half will ?attempt suicide ?before their twentieth birthday.
But one organization in Virginia is trying to keep kids alive, by providing free training to schools across the state.
The Episcopal Diocese of Virginia runs six private schools across the state. When the issue of transgender students and bathroom use began to make headlines, it was clear to Bishop Suffragan Susan Goff the time had come to make some decisions.
She convened administrators, but they quickly realized they didn’t even know where to start.
“What is the vocabulary here? What language should I be using for this? What are the definitions of transgender? What is the psychology?” she recalls.
So they reached out to Side by Side. The nonprofit runs programs that support LGBTQ youth in Richmond, Charlottesville and Petersburg. They also provide free training to schools.
It was that service that the Episcopal Diocese took advantage of. And Goff is glad they did.
There are now trans-identifying students at each school the Diocese runs.
Goff says like many things in our lives, supporting transgender students takes on new meaning when it’s someone we know.
“When it’s a person, it’s a whole different story,” Goff says. “This is about this person that we’ve seen growing up. This is about someone that we know and love. And care about.”
Last year, Side by Side trained more than 5,000 people in Virginia. The training includes basic terminology, sharing personal stories, and best practices for supporting kids as they come out.
In addition to the Episcopal Diocese, Side by Side has worked with Roanoke College and Charlottesville Public Schools.
Ted Lewis is Executive Director.
“Our goal is to keep our kids alive. Cause sadly that’s what we’re talking about,” says Executive Director Ted Lewis.
Studies show LGBTQ youth are at a greater risk for suicide, self harm, bullying, and even homelessness.
“And we know if we can provide trained staff that know how to best support these young people as they’re coming that those kids are more likely to not only survive, but hopefully thrive,” adds Lewis.
That work is increasingly important. As the Trump administration rolls back guidelines meant to protect transgender students, Lewis says they’ve seen an increase in anti LGBTQ sentiment.
Side by Side does annual surveys of the kids that come to them seeking help. In 2017 there was an uptick in suicidal thoughts.
“When we did the survey 70-percent of the youth who come to Side by Side, whether that’s in Richmond, Charlottesville or Petersburg, said they had seriously thought about killing themselves in the last six months, 70-percent,” says Lewis.
That’s up 11-percent from the year before.
But with supportive adults, a welcoming environment, and a peer group -- Lewis says they can bring that number down. And it doesn’t even have to involve changing people’s personal or religious beliefs, he adds.
“We sort of jokingly always tell people, you can believe a gay kid is going to hell. You don’t have to tell them that. You can keep that to yourself,” Lewis says. “And you can still be respectful, and you can still be supportive of them.”
In addition to free training for any k-12 school or college in Virginia, Side by Side also offers the LGBTQ training for corporations, local government officials, and even police officers.
This report, provided by Virginia Public Radio, was made possible with support from the Virginia Education Association.
