Union workers at the Trevor Project have expressed their disapproval of a recent decision by the Department of Health and Human Services to discontinue funding for specialized suicide hotline services targeting LGBTQ+ youth and young adults. The 988 Lifeline, known for its public awareness, connects LGBTQ+ individuals in crisis with counselors trained to address their specific needs. Workers from the Trevor Project, represented by Communications Workers of America (CWA) Local 1180, manage nearly half of these interactions.
Despite this funding cut, the Trevor Project will continue to operate its helpline for LGBTQ+ youth and young adults. Over the past three years, the 988 LGBTQ+ program has provided assistance to over 1.3 million young people.
Jack Hanson, a 988 Lifeline Crisis Counselor, stated: “As a collective, we are devastated by Trump cutting the LGBTQ+ youth line. This executive action serves as a death sentence to many in this demographic. We want to emphasize that LGBTQ+ youth deserve to be affirmed in who they are and that they deserve to live meaningful lives. We also wish to say this includes all categories of this community, including trans and queer youth, who the Trump Administration had ignorantly excluded from its initial announcement. Despite the line closure, we will always be dedicated to protecting this population in spite of the hatred, hostility, and cruelty of the Trump administration. We urge supporters to contact their members of Congress and Senators to urge them to restore funding for the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline’s LGBTQ+ Youth Specialized Services.”
Gloria Middleton, president of CWA Local 1180, criticized the timing and nature of this decision: “The decision to shut down LGTBQ+ crisis services in the middle of the fiscal year – announced during Pride month – is a deliberate provocation and a despicable attack on LGBTQ+ workers and the community. CWA members provide vital life-saving services for kids who need our help. Our union stands united behind the Trevor Project workers and the LGTBQ+ community that they serve.”
Dennis Trainor, Vice President of CWA District 1 remarked: “The attacks on the LGBTQ+ community are one front in this Administration’s larger war on working people. America is a country built by and for the working class, with all types of people coming together to work for a brighter future for our children. LGBTQ+ workers and families are part of the rich tapestry of American life. At CWA they provide crisis services for at-risk youth, connect households and small businesses to high-speed internet services, and drive American innovation forward while working on NIH-funded grants. They will not be erased, and the labor movement stands with our LGBTQ+ siblings.”
Union workers at The Trevor Project have protections under a union contract which includes guaranteed severance pay if layoffs occur.
The national 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline was launched in 2022 providing specialized services for LGBTQ+ youth who are statistically more likely than their peers to attempt suicide. This initiative enjoys bipartisan support having been established through an act passed by Congress as part of The National Suicide Hotline Designation Act signed into law by President Donald Trump in October 2020.
