The world has clearly not fully accepted LGBTQ+ people, as 75 countries still criminalize acts of homosexuality, parents still throw out their children for being transgender, and the world still has not fully accepted LGBTQ+ people. People live in fear of being outed to those they love and often choose to suffer living a life that is not who they are. They choose to endure this rather than have disapproval hanging over them, rather than being disowned, or, in extreme cases, facing jail time. Students may be afraid to attend school, fearing the spiteful remarks that come from many of their peers. People who speak out may be targeted and extreme religious groups keep others from joining those who speak out against hate. In extreme cases, people are severely harmed or even killed for choosing to be who they are rather than conforming to society’s heteronormative and cissexist standards. LGBTQ+ people face many challenges in day to day life, including discrimination from the communities around them, which then contribute to their lower overall health and standings in society.
An LGBTQ+ person’s health is in severe danger compared to straight and cisgender people’s health. Living in a community that does not accept you reduces a person’s life expectancy by 12 years. This may come from family, which for some people, is the most important part of their lives, or possibly from religious groups, another important aspect of identity. Many LGBTQ+ people choose to not explicitly state they are gay, bisexual, transgender, which may contribute to problems within their community and their families. For instance, Lyndsey Mudro, a sophomore in college who is in a same-sex relationship, has experienced rejection from her family, who disapprove of this relationship, and has experienced many repercussions because of it. Another LGBTQ+ person, Emma Bennett, has experienced such hate within her religious group. She has since removed herself from those people, but she felt the need to hide much of her identity because they did not agree with her feelings. Gay people in communities that do not accept them are more likely to commit suicide and have violent tendencies, and, even within the LGBTQ+ community, there is still discrimination, like biphobia, transphobia, and erasure. LGBTQ+ people have significantly higher rates of mental illnesses than their straight, cisgender counterparts. Mental health, although often overlooked, is just as important as physical health, and contributes to physical health, which makes an LGBTQ+ person’s life much harder in more than one way. Mental illness is more prevalent among LGBTQ+ youth, because of school rules that may discriminate against them. This, in turn, leads to teenagers who feel same-sex attraction being twice as likely to attempt to take their own lives compared to their straight counterparts, and numbers may be higher because of teens who do not identify as gay. Discrimination contributes to these problems, and oftentimes, in a similar fashion, transgender people with gender dysphoria feel incredibly prejudiced against. Transgender people have experienced the most discrimination in today’s society, with their issue having come to light in recent years. Celebrities such as Caitlyn Jenner and Laverne Cox have helped to ease this issue, but transgender people still experience discrimination at high levels, which contribute to higher levels of mental health problems.
Many problems face people who are LGBTQ+ through all aspects of their lives, including work and in public places. “Of all the gay, lesbian and bisexual employees [surveyed in a 2013 Deloitte study], 83 percent admitted to changing some aspects of themselves so they would not appear at work ‘too gay’”. This contributes to mental health problems, as discussed in the first paragraph. Even in fairly modern cities, like St. Louis, transgender support groups find that most of the people there have experienced work discrimination, perpetuated by archaic ideas of gender. Employers often fire their workers because they are transgender, and can turn them down for a job for that sole reason, recent cases including a transgender woman fired an hour after receiving a job at KFC. Even at companies with inclusion policies, “[a] study found that … employees struggle to be themselves at work because they believe conformity is critical to their long-term career advancement”. This idea in those worker’s heads is further affirmed because transgender people are four times more likely to make less than $10,000 compared to cisgender people, and are two times more likely to be unemployed. This leads to the absurdly high amounts of transgender people who are homeless, and the crime rate that is often used to prove transgender people are dangerous, when in fact, it is poverty that puts them in such a cycle. As well as this obvious disparity between cisgender and transgender pay, bills are still being brought about that allow people to discriminate against LGBTQ+ people in businesses. Religious freedom laws being some of the most prominent, business owners are allowed to refuse service to same-sex couples on the basis that their faith forbids that for them. There also have been recent talks in the United States, especially in the south, of bathroom policy. Conservatives argue that they want to keep cisgender people safe from sexual harassment, but people who do not present as the gender they were given at birth are more susceptible to such treatment. For example, Lisa Dazols, a lesbian who appears androgynous, tries to make herself appear more feminine while going to the bathroom to reassure every there she is not there to harm them, even though her only intent is to go to the bathroom, forcing her to live in fear.
The solution to lessen discrimination is to bring about a change of mind, rather than a change of laws. Children who are bullied less have a lower rate of suicide, but safety in school for these students is often precarious. Although many GSA (gay straight alliance) clubs exist, students still hear many microaggressions at every turn, and often live in fear of bullies who may be around any corner. Going to school in a harmful environment leads to many problems. Schools must lead the way in acceptance of LGBTQ+ people, because children become socialized there, and hearing phrases such as “You’re so gay!”, or words used to demean LGBTQ+ people, especially the F and Q slurs, can make people feel like their identity is invalid. If students know that these words can cut deep, they are more likely to stop using them, leading to a better environment, but this is only possible if they change their mind about the connotation of the words. Although self-confidence immediately begins to improve when an LGBTQ+ person accepts themselves, it can be hard to do so in a homophobic environment. Peer pressure is extremely hard to overcome, and many people have a hard time dealing with their friends not accepting them. By changing their peer's mind on the subject matter, they are more likely to be accepted by this friend, and it leads to a better life for this person. If this person begins to hide their identity, they may find it is a habit they cannot break, which leads to further problems. This adds to the many challenges LGBTQ+ people face with their health, and if a community is open and accepting, LGBTQ+ people are more likely to come out. It is impossible to have a change in laws without a change of mind. Lawmakers who are homophobic and transphobic still write laws that discriminate against LGBTQ+ people. For instance, “the Kansas House of Representatives brought up a bill for a vote that would have essentially allowed businesses to use religious freedom as a reason to deny gays services”. These lawmakers can be voted out of office, but not till the population makes a conscious effort to change their mindset.
The many troubles LGBTQIA+ people face can be alleviated with a simple change of mind, which begins with education on many of these issues. This society must work together to make sure that all can live without fear and in freedom as they were promised.
