In a “grande” gesture last week, Ariana Grande announced an initiative “to support organizations providing direct services and advocating for the rights of trans youth.” In addition to raising money by creating awareness of the nearly 240 anti-LGBTQ+ bills filed in 2022, Grande has pledged to match all funds raised up to $1.5 million.
“Right now there are hundreds of disgraceful bills pending in state legislature that target trans youth and aim to curb their rights,” the singer wrote on Instagram. The bills to which she’s referring criminalize sex-change therapy for minors, legislate women’s sports and ban discussions of gender identity in early elementary classrooms, to name a few.
Those in support of these bills being enacted into law say that they’re advocates of parental rights over the content of the curriculum in public education and frequently cite protecting young children from sexuality and gender discussions in their arguments. Meanwhile, opponents suggest the laws are thinly veiled attempts to discriminate against LGBQT+ youth and point to the alarming suicide rate of these youths when they lack support.
As the Trevor Project notes, “Suicide is the second leading cause of death among young people, with LGBTQ youth being four times more likely to seriously consider suicide, to make a plan for suicide, and to attempt suicide versus their peers.” By removing discussions of LGBQT+ issues from the classroom, proposing bills that regulate where someone goes to the restroom, what sports they play and how they express their identity, this legislation is sending a message that gender identity is something to hide, marginalize, and associate with shame—and it contributes to the risks these youths are already experiencing at a heightened level.
Grande, for one, is taking a stand, and she’s putting her money where her (unreasonably beautiful and songbird-like) voice is. “The impact of fighting these anti-trans bills and policies is felt all year by trans people, their families and loved ones,” she says.
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