Growing up outside Akron, Ohio in the 1990s and early 2000s, Shane Staal felt like it was taboo to be part of the LGBTQ+ community or talk about the LGBTQ+ experience.
Staal, 40, who identifies as gay, said that despite growing up in an accepting and supportive family, he felt unable to express himself openly and feared he would be ostracized by his community if he did.
As Ohio lawmakers began introducing, and in some cases passing, anti-LGBTQ+ bills at both the local and state levels, Staal said it took a toll on his mental health.
“I wish I could leave,” he told ABC News. “You feel very lonely. I don’t know if this is everyone’s experience, but my experience was always, ‘What does that person think of me? Do they think I might be gay? And if so, would they treat me differently? Would they say something to someone that would affect my job or my ability to rent an apartment or get a car or the things I need to survive?’ So it was definitely very lonely and scary.”
About a year and a half ago, Stahl moved to West Hollywood after taking a job with Equality California, a nonprofit civil rights organization that advocates for LGBTQ+ rights in the state, and said living in an accepting community has made her feel welcome and improved her mental health.
Witnessing the rise in anti-LGBTQ+ laws “was definitely one of the things that motivated me to leave Ohio and come to a place where there are stricter laws and I’m more protected as a gay person,” he said. “Coming from my life in the suburbs of northeast Ohio, I feel more at peace in my life now than I did before.”
While anti-LGBTQ+ laws can have a detrimental effect on mental health, experts and LGBTQ+ rights advocates say laws that provide greater protections for LGBTQ+ people can have the opposite effect, as well as bring about a sense of acceptance and belonging.
LGBTQ+ people are at higher risk for mental health problems
Research has shown that LGBTQ+ people are more likely to experience mental health issues than heterosexual or cisgender people.
According to the American Psychiatric Association, LGBTQ+ people are 2.5 times more likely to suffer from depression, anxiety and substance abuse than heterosexual people.
Additionally, LGBTQ+ youth are at higher risk for suicidal thoughts, suicidal ideation, and suicide attempts.
But experts say there is nothing inherently that puts LGBTQ+ people at higher risk for mental health problems or suicide, and that it’s mainly caused by prejudice, stigma and discrimination.
“LGBTQ people are not at higher risk for suicide or other mental illnesses because of something inherent in us; it’s because of how we are treated,” says Casey Pick, legal and policy director at the Trevor Project, a nonprofit focused on suicide prevention for LGBTQ+ youth.
This prejudice and discrimination can take the form of anti-LGBTQ+ legislation, such as forced outings in schools, bans on school sports, bans on gender reassignment care for minors, criminalization of drag performances, bans on books, and restrictions on the rights of LGBTQ+ people to adopt or foster children.
In 2023, a FiveThirtyEight analysis found that more than 100 anti-LGBTQ+ laws have been passed in the past five years, with more than half of them passing in the last year.
According to the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), more than 500 anti-LGBTQ+ bills have been introduced in the 2024 legislative session. These policies can have a negative impact on mental health.
Pick, who identifies as lesbian, said she remembers when marriage equality was being debated in the U.S. In 2008, California lawmakers were debating Proposition 8, a ballot measure that would have added a state constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage.
“I remember being in my early 20s when Proposition 8 was being actively debated in California, and the constant barrage of negative ads portraying gay people like me as a threat to children and families for just trying to have a family constantly had a negative impact on my mental health,” she said.
Anti-LGBTQ+ laws and policies have been enacted, causing many people, and in some cases their families, to leave their home states and migrate to more protective states.
“No one should feel like they can’t live or call home the place they want to call home because of who they are or who they love,” Staal said. “The goal shouldn’t be to move these people, but to make their communities inclusive and welcoming.”
Pro-LGBTQ+ legislation benefits mental health
Although more research is needed to better understand the full impact of protective laws on LGBTQ+ people, studies have shown that pro-LGBTQ+ laws can have a positive impact on mental health.
A 2018 study found that sexual minority men were more likely to report poor/fair health compared to heterosexual men in states with limited protections, but the study also found that sexual minority women were more likely to report poor/fair self-rated health compared to heterosexual men in states with both comprehensive and limited protections, although protective state laws had no effect on sexual minority women in the study.
A 2016 study of transgender veterans found that those living in states with employment non-discrimination laws were 26% less likely to suffer from mood disorders and 43% less likely to self-harm.
“We know that living in a safe, affirming and accepting community is directly linked to lower suicide rates and better mental health,” Pick said. “These include safe schools, access to needed health care and basic equality in everyday life.”
Pick said he was encouraged that the discussion around same-sex marriage in the United States was starting to shift in a positive direction.
She compared how she felt in 2008 to “how good I felt in 2012 when the votes started to turn around.” “It was exhausting to be part of a political movement that I didn’t want to be in, but the day we won the election, the day people accepted us and welcomed LGBTQ people into our community, that made a difference.”
Stahl said he often jokes that moving to a state like California, which has broad LGBTQ+ protections, “feels like being on another planet.”
“When you walk down the street, you see stores with gay pride flags and pride flags in their windows,” he said, “you see people providing services specifically for the LGBTQ+ community, you see a wealth of resources, you see local and state governments that want what’s best for the community and are actively working to improve our quality of life and let us know that we’re welcome and that we belong here.”
Pick and Staal encourage people to contact their state legislators to oppose anti-LGBTQ+ bills and advocate for protective legislation.
She adds that it’s also important to create a safe, accepting and supportive community for LGBTQ+ people.
“Simple things like having a home where not only your child but maybe your child’s LGBTQ friends feel safe to come and hang out, get cookies after school, a place where they can just relax and unwind and not face the hostility that is so common today,” Pick said.
