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Sexual minority teens and all teens who get harassed because someone thinks they are gay are at increased risk of self-harm. They are at least twice as likely as their peers to seriously consider suicide, to make specific suicide plans, to attempt suicide and to say they have made at least one attempt in the past year that required treatment by a health care professional.  And suicide prevention efforts have rarely spoken to the issue of harassment at all, no less anti-gay harassment. We haven’t begun to teach children or teens how to recover their dignity when they are bullied or attacked in this way or where to reach out for support. It is time we changed that.

Befrienders International: Not specific to LGBTQ people, this site contains details of local suicide support services in over 40 countries and is translated into seven languages: http://www.befrienders.org  

Darkness Calls: This comic book, inspired, written and illustrated by Steve Sanderson, a professional Aboriginal (native Canadian) youth cartoonist, is a great resource on suicide prevention for youth, visual learners and hard to reach populations.  It’s the story of a teenager that feels socially isolated and has difficulty at school.  Even though Kyle has tremendous artistic talent and the support of a good friend he finds one day just too overwhelming and considers taking his own life.  It’s the story of the struggle between good and evil over the spirits of youth. The story was previewed with health professionals and youth focus groups for authentic characters and language. From the Healthy Aboriginal Network, 328 E 32nd Ave, Vancouver, BC, Canada, V5V 2Y4; 604-876-0243; http://www.thehealthyaboriginal.net

Listen to: "Intro to Gabi's Song" (1:32) and "Will It Always Be Like This" (4:30)
by Steve Schalchlin - on Beyond The Light (2002) http://www.bonusround.com/
 

The Amethyst Ribbon Campaign - established by TransYouth Family Advocates (TYFA) as an awareness project to battle suicide among transgender youth as part of the Ian Benson Project. Ian was a 16-year old affirmed male who took his own life in October 2007. Ian’s mother, TYFA’s secretary/treasurer, hopes to help other children and families avoid the pain and struggles that can lead to suicide among trans youth.  http://imatyfa.org/2007/11/05/news-release/ 

Depression: This article by a youth intern for other GLBTQ youth talks about when feeling sad or hopeless "is more than just a temporary mood change" and what to do about it. It offers other youths' stories and poems and a ton of great toll-free hotlines and web sites: http://www.youthresource.com/health/content/depression.htm 

Don't Erase Your Queer Future, a web site from the Trevor Project for LGBTQ youth about suicide: http://www.donteraseyourqueerfuture.org/

Face The Issue: offers sobering, straightforward web animation with celebrity narration regarding anorexia/bulimia, depression, alcohol/other drugs, abuse, and self-esteem: http://www.facetheissue.com

“If you are thinking of committing suicide... read this first”: http://mogenic.com/article.asp?article_id=113  

Marcus Wayman Campaign: Marcus Wayman was eighteen years old in 1997 when he committed suicide after police found condoms in his pocket and concluded he was gay.  Small town police (Minersville, PA) threatened to out him to the community and family members.  Marcus, hours later, took a revolver and shot himself in the head. In November 2001a jury in Allentown acquitted the police from any wrongdoing. More information: http://www.marcuswayman.org

“Sexual Orientation and Youth Suicide”: to purchase this article from the Journal of the American Medical Association (Vol. 282, pp. 1291-1292, October 6, 1999) by Gary Remafedi, MD, MPH, University of Minnesota Medical School, Minneapolis, click here.  

Suicide among Gay/Lesbian/Bisexual Youth: a report by Heather E. Murphy. There is an html version: http://www.safeschoolscoalition.org/SuicideamongGLByouth.html and a pdf version: http://www.safeschoolscoalition.org/Suicide.pdf 

TEACH Ministries (To Educate About the Consequences of Homophobia):   Mary Lou and Bob Wallner lost their lesbian Christian daughter Anna to suicide in February of 1997. They now work to see the church accept and welcome GLBT people. http://www.teach-ministries.org

Tips on Depression and Suicide for Teens (from the Society for Adolescent Medicine): http://www.adolescenthealth.org/Health_Guide_for_Americas_Teens.pdf (pdf format)

The Trevor Helpline: a national suicide hotline for GLBT and questioning youth: a 24-hour confidential hotline, staffed by trained counselors familiar with gay and questioning youth. Web site: http://www.thetrevorproject.org/ … Phone: 1-800-850-8078

Youth Suicide Prevention Program: YSPP envisions Washington as a state where youth suicide is a rare event, where young people are nurtured and supported, where individuals and families are aware of risk factors for suicide, and actively seek help from accessible, effective community resources. To that end, they focus on public awareness, training, and communities in action. Training is available that focuses on GLBTQ youth and the issues they face. These trainings are for service providers that want more information about suicide prevention and early intervention, more information on why GLBTQ youth are at an increased risk for suicide and self harm, and how they can best support these youth to increase their protective factors against suicide and self harm. Contact Heather Carter, GLBTQ Project Coordinator, Youth Suicide Prevention Program; Phone: 206-297-5922 Ext. 116; Email: Heather@yspp.org; Address: 444 NE Ravenna Blvd., #401, Seattle, WA 98115; Phone: (206) 297-5922; Fax: (206) 297-0818; General email: info@yspp.org; Website: http://www.yspp.org/

Youth Suicide Problems: Gay/Bisexual Male Focus: A web site devoted to this single issue: http://www.youth-suicide.com/gay-bisexual/

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