Concerns of Parents of Lesbians and Gays: Interview with Cynthia Conley, Ph.D.
Risk for suicide among gay youth has caught a lot of attention in the American media as of late. There have been a number of youth who have been bullied because they have been gay or perceived to be gay and who have consequently died by suicide. Dan Savage and friends and colleagues and supporters have put together an amazing project called "It Gets Better" ( http://www.itgetsbetterproject.com/ ) focusing on the issue of youth suicide for gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, question and queer teens. Now there is good reason for this. According to the U.S. Government�s Report of the Secretary's Task Force on Youth Suicide , gay and lesbian youth bear an increased risk of suicide, substance abuse, school problems, and isolation because of a "hostile and condemning environment, verbal and physical abuse, rejection and isolation from [peers and family]" (Gibson, 1989). Social worker and pioneer gay and lesbian researcher Caitlin Ryan, found that lesbian, gay, and b