In a recent article in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, IDS Affiliate Mollie McQuillan was interviewed about the removal of the Youth Risk Behavior Survey or YRBS from public sources and its potential impact on LGBTQ youth and related research. From the article
“”Mollie McQuillan is assistant professor in educational leadership and policy analysis at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She said the Youth Risk Behavior Survey is one of the few data sources that provide a representative sample of transgender youth ― and all LGBTQ+ youth ― in the state and nation.
Among other findings, the survey shows that LGBTQ+ youths in Wisconsin report experiencing more depression, anxiety and suicidal thoughts than their peers. They also experience more bullying and safety issues at school, and fewer means of receiving help from adults.
That data allows researchers to study how school environments affect LGBTQ+ youth, McQuillan said ― and to recommend targeted ways to support them.
She said the Trump administration’s attempt to suppress the YRBS is a form of “informational erasure.”
First mentioned in a 2009 academic article, “informational erasure” refers to a lack of health care knowledge regarding trans people, trans experiences and trans health ― and the false assumption that this knowledge does not exist.
“It’s hard to have evidence-based policy if you are taking away access to the evidence itself,” McQuillan said…”