(The Center Square) — The Trump administration has ordered an end to federal funding for a national LGBTQ+ suicide prevention hotline, effective Thursday.
The Trevor Project, which operates the LGBTQ+ crisis hotline, was notified in June by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration that the national 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline would no longer offer the specialized “Press 3” option for LGB+ youth, opting instead to serve all callers under a unified system.
“This is devastating, to say the least. Suicide prevention is about people, not politics,” said Jaymes Black, CEO of The Trevor Project. “The administration’s decision to remove a bipartisan, evidence-based service that has effectively supported a high-risk group of young people through their darkest moments is incomprehensible.”
However, some family advocacy groups and law enforcement officials welcomed the move. Concerns had been raised about TrevorSpace, an online platform from The Trevor Project for LGBTQ+ youth ages 13 to 24. Investigators claimed the site allowed adults to bypass age verification and engage in private, sexually explicit conversations with minors without oversight.
Beth Bourne, a California mother critical of gender ideology in schools, posted on X about a phone call she made while posing as a 15-year-old transgender boy. She claimed that when she told a Trevor Project counselor she felt unsafe at home and wanted to move in with her softball coach—who offered help in accessing testosterone and top surgery—the counselor approved of the plan. “The Trevor Project counselor said it sounded like a great plan. Insanity,” Bourne wrote.
The Center Square reached out to The Trevor Project for comment regarding the security concerns but received no response.
In response to the federal decision, California lawmakers are taking action. Assembly Bill 727, introduced by Assemblyman Mark Gonzalez (D-Los Angeles), would require the Trevor Project’s hotline number to appear on student ID cards from grade 7 through college in public schools.
“This federal government is determined to erase LGBTQ+ Americans by any means necessary,” said Gonzalez. “Youth suicide prevention should be a bipartisan priority. Instead, our community — especially our youth — is being used as a pawn by political opportunists chasing headlines and social media clout. I am proud to fight for my community because these cuts are more than a political decision — lives are on the line.”
Governor Gavin Newsom also secured $17.5 million in state funding for the 988 State Suicide and Behavioral Health Crisis Services Fund.
“Cutting off a proven lifeline for people in need is outrageous and inexcusable,” said Newsom. “While this federal administration slashes services and tries to erase LGBTQ people, California will do the opposite. Every child — straight, gay, transgender — belongs.”
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