LGBTQ Group Says Texas Leaders Are ‘Legislating Us Out of Existence'

Restrictive laws and attempts to curtail gender-affirming care are frightening and stressful for young trans people, says Sam Ames of The Trevor Project, a nonprofit focused on preventing suicide among LGBTQ youth. The organization has tracked nearly 200 anti-LGBTQ bills in legislatures across the country, and recent letters from Texas Gov. Greg Abbott and Attorney General Ken Paxton that equated gender-affirming care to child abuse. Ames is urging adults to speak up and reach out to any LGBTQ young people in their life. "Tell them you support them and accept them for who they are," Ames says.