Young LGBTQ+ People of Color Feel Safest Online on TikTok, Study Finds

Recent research from LGBTQ+ crisis support charity The Trevor Project shows evidence that LGBTQ+ youth – particularly people of color – feel most safe and understood on TikTok compared to other social media platforms. The project, which sought to understand the extent of the mental health crisis currently sweeping the community, also provided feedback from young people detailing which social media platforms feel like less of a safe space.

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The ongoing concern relating to the relationship between Gen Z (the current generation of teenagers/young adults) and social media has sparked major discussions about what can be done to ensure social apps and websites provide a healthier, safer environment to their users. Combined with the current discussion revolving around LGBTQ+ mental health and reported emotions of feeling unsafe and having no sense of belonging, The Trevor Project thought it important to ascertain where LGBTQ+ people feel understood and like they can be themselves.

The study, which took place earlier this year, includes data from over 28,000 LGBTQ+ people aged 13-24 from the United States of America. According to the results, 53% of young LGBTQ+ people of color reported feelings of safety and being understood on TikTok, in comparison to 45% of white respondents. Data also showed that Discord was the second highest ranking social media site that evoked this response with 43% of LGBTQ+ people of color, followed by Instagram with 41%, and YouTube with 33%. Smaller social media sites especially created for LGBTQ+ users also followed this trend.

Reports from Yahoo! reveal why Wilson Lee (Senior Learning Research Scientist at The Trevor Project) felt it was important to carry out these studies on the impact of social media on LGBTQ+ people.

“There are lots of good things and also, unfortunately, lots of harmful things. And then they're also good and harmful in different ways for different people, so we’re trying to sort of dive into that.”

“We know that LGBTQ+ young people, when they go on social media, they often can benefit from social support and exploration and things like that — so we know that's sort of different from their non-LGBTQ+ peers [who] might not be seeking that as much,” Lee went onto say. “And then, sort of from a different lens, community support is also another thing that young people of color tend to look for in the spaces because not everyone has access to supportive spaces in real life.”

Previous data from The Trevor Project has indicated that at least four out of ten young LGBTQ+ people have seriously considered attempting suicide in the past year. This data also showed that 60% of LGBTQ+ young people reported that they felt discriminated against in the past year and 15% reported being threatened with or subjected to conversion therapy.

As some areas of the United States become increasingly hostile to LGBTQ+ youth, it is becoming more important for them to find places of sanctuary and refuge from the torrents of hate they can be exposed to. If social media, in particular apps like TikTok and Discord, can provide this safe space, it is vital that the rights and protection of LGBTQ+ youth remain a priority on these platforms.

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