Background:
Adolescents today have unprecedented and uninterrupted
access to news and current events through broadcast and social media. Lesbian,
gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and questioning (LGBTQ) adolescents may be
especially cognizant of media and public discourse pertaining to law and policy
changes affecting the legal rights of their communities. The minority stress
framework explains how sociopolitical discourse impacts mental health among
sexual and gender minority youths.
Objectives:
This paper identifies and describes contemporary sociopolitical and
legal issues that may impact LGBTQ adolescents’ mental health.
Methods:
Authors describe the minority stress framework as applied to gender and
sexual identity and explore key sociopolitical and legal topics relevant to LGBTQ
adolescents, including employment; medical care bans; health insurance coverage;
conversion therapy; religious exemptions in health care; housing rights; and rights
in schools and school districts, including participation in sports.
Results:
LGBTQ youth experience rejection, prejudice, and discrimination directly
through adverse legislative or administrative action and more pervasively through
the dominant cultural beliefs and sociopolitical messaging that such developments
manifest.
Conclusion:
Mental health clinicians who are aware of legal issues and
sociopolitical debate pertinent to LGBTQ rights are better prepared to address their
significant impact on LGBTQ adolescents’ mental health.