NEW YORK CITY, March 23, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The Trevor Project, the nation’s largest and only accredited suicide prevention and crisis intervention organization for LGBTQ youth, responds to the Administration’s renewed call for a ban on transgender individuals serving in the military. The following statement is from Trevor Project CEO and Executive Director Amit Paley.
“When a young person hears that they are not worthy of protecting their nation, they hear that they are not worthy to be a part of that nation. Transgender youth seeing this policy should know that they are not alone and that they are worthy of honor and respect, whether they choose to serve in the military or not,” said Amit Paley, CEO and Executive Director of The Trevor Project.
“We know these policies have real consequences. Typically The Trevor Project gets around 7% of our daily calls from young people who identify as transgender, but last August, when the Administration first announced this ban, that amount rose to nearly 18%.
“We will always fight for the safety of LGBTQ young people. In response to the last ban on transgender service members, The Trevor Project filed amicus briefs in nearly every case, and our amicus brief was cited as a pivotal factor in the previous court decision of the case, with three such citations in Doe v Trump alone.”
The Trevor Project is here 24/7/365 for transgender service members, and anyone else in the community who needs someone to talk to. Call our 24/7 lifeline at 1-866-488-7386. Text and chat counseling is available from 3-10pm EST every day at www.thetrevorproject.org/help.
--
The Trevor Project is the leading and only accredited national organization providing crisis intervention and suicide prevention services to lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and questioning (LGBTQ) young people under the age of 25. The Trevor Project offers a suite of crisis intervention and suicide prevention programs, including TrevorLifeline, TrevorText, and TrevorChat as well as a peer-to-peer social network support for LGBTQ young people under the age of 25, TrevorSpace. Trevor also offers an education program with resources for youth-serving adults and organizations, a legislative advocacy department fighting for pro-LGBTQ legislation and against anti-LGBTQ rhetoric/policy positions, and conducts research to discover the most effective means to help young LGBTQ people in crisis and end suicide. If you or someone you know is feeling hopeless or suicidal, our Trevor Lifeline crisis counselors are available 24/7/365 at 866.488.7386. www.TheTrevorProject.org
Attachment:
A photo accompanying this announcement is available at http://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/6e9f3be0-4756-4c3b-9eb8-3f99f2117dea