According to  Time magazine article, anti-transgender policies have caused a rise in suicide attempts among transgender and nonbinary youth, a per a new Trevor Project peer-reviewed  study published in the journal Nature Human Behavior, which found when states pass anti-transgender laws (i.e., bathroom bans that bar trans students from using the bathroom that matches their gender identity or challenges to gender marker updates that make it more difficult for trans people to have their accurate gender on state IDs) suicide attempts among trans and nonbinary youth ages 13 to 17 increased from 7% to 72%. 

Using data from 2018 to 2022 with a sample size of 61,000 people aged 12-24 years, Trevor Project researchers compared suicide-related outcomes for trans and nonbinary youth in states that had enacted one or more anti-transgender laws to states that did not enact such laws while accounting for outside factors that could affect suicide rates. They found that trans and nonbinary youth are placed at greater suicide risk because of the stigma and mistreatment experienced in society, including discriminatory laws and policies. It is the first study to establish what the researchers call a causal relationship between such policies and higher suicide attempt rates.

The research also shows that the adverse effects of anti-trans state policies on minors were seen earlier, or shortly after a law was passed, and were much more pronounced compared to the broader sample size that encompasses adults since  many state-level anti-transgender laws [are] targeting minors under the age of 18, and therefore really limiting the ability of young people to access gender-affirming-care or facilities to participate in school activities and sports that align with their gender. 

To read more from Time, click here.