Understanding LGBTQ+ Youth Homelessness

When I was a teenager, I ran away from my abusive mom and went to live with my closest adult friends who I believed to be safe people.

The first night I stayed with them they said, “You’re over that gay⁠ (gay: A man who is attracted to other men, or a person of any sex or gender who is sexually and emotionally attracted to people of the same or a similar sex or gender. Often used alongside lesbian.) thing, right?” I lied and said I was. Five months later, when they read my journal, and discovered that I was still very queer⁠ (queer: In the context of sexuality, a broad term for sexual orientation that can describe any number of orientations which are not heterosexual. People who identify as queer may be bisexual or pansexual, gay or lesbian, questioning, asexual or more.) , they kicked me out⁠ (out: Short for ‘out of the closet’. When someone’s LGBTQ+ identity is known to other people.) . One of the first places I went after I became homeless again was a drop-in center for LGBTQ⁠ (LGBTQ: L = lesbian, G = gay, B = bisexual, T = transgender, Q = queer or questioning. Additional letters sometimes added include U = unsure, I = intersex, P = pansexual, A= asexual, S = straight allies.) + youth. Not only did I gain access to support and community, I quickly learned just how common my experience was.

Over the next decade, I would work with other current and former homeless LGBTQ+ youth, advocates, service providers, and policy makers to try and gain a better understanding of what is and has long been an epidemic of homelessness among LGBTQ+ youth. I quickly learned that LGBTQ+ youth homelessness is incredibly common, not just here in the United States where I live, but all around the world. Although we lack truly global studies of the experience of homeless LGBTQ+ youth around the world, we know that globally, LGBTQ+ youth experience housing instability more frequently than cisgender⁠ (cisgender: Describes people who have a gender identity which is traditionally thought to “match” their assigned sex. For instance, someone who was assigned male at birth who identifies as a man. Often used in relation to transgender.) and/or heterosexual⁠ (heterosexual: Someone who is only or mostly emotionally and sexually attracted to people of a different sex or gender than they are themselves.)  teenagers.

You Are Not Alone

One of the scariest things about being a homeless or housing unstable teenager is the overwhelming feeling of being alone. I think this feeling of fear and isolation is particularly common among LGBTQ+ youth whose experience of homelessness is often accompanied by some kind of family, or community rejection for who they are, a kind of double isolation. Even though it didn’t provide me with stable housing or a plan, I’ll never forget how comforting it felt just to have the experience of meeting other homeless queer youth. Meeting other young people like me not only gave me community, it just as importantly helped me to understand how common my experience was. Learning this also inspired me to become a community organizer to do whatever I could to help other homeless queer youth feel less alone and isolated by the experience.

Understanding Queer Youth Homelessness

Unfortunately, there have not been comprehensive global studies about the experience of LGBTQ+ youth homelessness. 

However, studies from individual countries around the world paint a clear picture. The studies that we do have show that LGBTQ+ youth homelessness is a crisis experienced by youth around the world. Researchers in Australia external link, opens in a new tab, for instance, found  that 23% of homeless youth identify as LGBTQ+, which is statistically higher than would be expected for youth on the whole. In the United States external link, opens in a new tab, we know that LGBTQ+ youth are 120% times more likely to experience homelessness than their heterosexual/cisgender peers, and that up to 40% of homeless youth identify as LGBTQ. In the UK ,it was found that 77% of youth experience homelessness after coming out/being outed as LGBTQ+.  Advocates across Europeexternal link, opens in a new tab want more research into documenting the crisis and epidemic of LGBTQ youth homelessness, and a better understanding of the unique needs of queer youth, but in the European Union 17%external link, opens in a new tab of LGBTQ youth experience homelessness. The United Nations Fair & Equal reportsexternal link, opens in a new tab that homelessness is reported as a “serious issue” faced by LGBTQ youth in West Africa and Nepal, where transgender⁠ (transgender: Describes people who find that the gender applied to them because of the sex they were assigned at birth is incorrect.) women are especially at risk.

Creating Supportive Services

There is a growing global understanding of the crisis of queer youth homelessness, and the need for culturally competent programs and supports. While LGBTQ+ youth around the world experience homelessness at rates more frequently than their heterosexual and cisgender peers, there still aren’t always the right services in places to support them. One of the primary problems with supporting LGBTQ+ youth experiencing homelessness is that homeless services were primarily designed for adults⁠ (adults: People whose age in years exceeds the legal age of majority, people considered to be adults by law, or people who a culture or individual considers to have reached an adult stage of life.) . Youth experiencing homelessness need developmentally appropriate services that can give them the support they need to safely grow up. This includes access to education, job training, and other life skills. Globally, there is an understanding among homeless youth leaders and advocates that not only do youth experiencing homelessness have specific needs, but that LGBTQ+ youth are a vulnerable population in need of culturally competent services. This means supports and services that affirm their identities, and provide safe access to supports including shelter and housing where they are affirmed for who they are, and protected from discrimination.

Why Do Queer and Trans Youth Experience Homelessness So Frequently?

There are a variety of factors at the root of why LGBTQ+ youth experience homelessness more frequently than cisgender and heterosexual teens, most of which stem from systemic nonsupport of and bias towards queer and trans people. It’s also important to note that, consistently across studies, intersex⁠ (intersex: Having reproductive and/or sexual anatomy that doesn’t seem to, or isn’t understood to, fit typical definitions of female or male, and/or chromosomal combinations other than XX or XY.) youth are also especially likely to experience homelessness. It’s also important to mention that in the United States, BIPOC youth are 83% more likely to experience homelessnessexternal link, opens in a new tab than non-BIPOC youth in general, and these percentages increase when the youth are LGBTQ+ identified. Because of institutional racism⁠ (racism: Prejudice, discrimination and oppression based on race/ethnicity or perceived or assigned race/ethnicity.) , youth of color are significantly more likely to experience barriers to accessing services to get out of homelessness. 

Family rejection is an especially common reason why LGBTQ+ youth experience homelessness.  In many cases, LGBTQ+ youth are kicked out or forced to leave home after they come out, or if they are outed. In other cases, homophobia⁠ (homophobia: Prejudice against homosexuality and homosexual people.) , transphobia⁠ (transphobia: Prejudice against transgender individuals. Transphobia may also include prejudice against any kind of gender nonconformity or gender nonconforming people.) , or both in the family makes home unsafe and LGBTQ+ youth have no choice but to leave home in order to survive. Religious community rejection and discrimination are also frequent causes of LGBTQ+ youth homelessness. In some cases, religious leaders may be encouraging families to reject their queer children and kick them out of the home. Or the religious leaders may encourage mistreatment of the LGBTQ+ youth resulting in the teen leaving home for their mental, physical, and/or emotional safety.

It’s Not Your Fault

If you are an LGBTQ+ youth who is experiencing homelessness, or think you might be kicked out, try to remember that you are not alone, and it is not your fault. LGBTQ+ people experience homelessness at higher rates not because there is something wrong with us or with being LGBTQ+, but because of homophobia, transphobia and other kinds of bias and bigotry.

If you are being mistreated at home, try to find supportive adults and tell them what is happening. It can feel scary and isolating, but know you are not alone.  There are many people who have gone through the same experiences, and there are adults and youth who will support you. You can also always start at Scarleteen in any of our direct services, where you can get emotional support and help finding or identifying local resources and safe adults close to you.