our minds matter

omm has pride in june & beyond

Pride Saves Lives

LGBTQ+ young folks face mental health barriers that their straight & cisgender counterparts do not. According to The Trevor Project’s 2024 National Survey on the Mental Health of LGBTQ+ Young People:

  • 66% of young LGBTQ+ people experienced symptoms of anxiety
  • 53% experienced symptoms of depression
  • 39% seriously considered suicide in the past year.
  • Folks who face intersecting oppression, such as trans folks or LGBTQ+ folks of color, often experience even higher rates of mental health concerns & barriers to care

Despite these somber realities, community can be life-saving; in fact, The Trevor Project also found that LGBTQ+ young folks who have access to affirming spaces reported much lower rates of attempting suicide compared to those who did not. LGBTQ+ young people deserve more, and they also deserve to see things about their community that aren’t about struggle or pain. So, OMM created the Under My Umbrella campaign to do just that.

Under My Umbrella

The Under My Umbrella campaign was launched to provide support and education about the health, safety, and well-being of LGBTQ+ youth while highlighting the importance of community and celebrating the joy the LGBTQ+ community brings to the world. Folks participating in the initiative are encouraged to grab an umbrella sheet, write down a message about how the community has protected, embraced, or uplifted them, and add it to an installation.

In addition to celebrating the warmth & light of the LGBTQ+ community, participants are reminded that umbrellas protect us from storms, and community does the same.

Thanks to a generous grant from the Behavioral Healthy Equity grant from the Virginia Department of Behavioral Health, OMM was able to send Under My Umbrella campaign kits (along with a safe space poster, resource cards, and other mental health Pride swag) to 35 schools in Virginia. To reach even more folks throughout the community, we also brought our activation to 3 concerts at The Anthem in DC (special thanks to The Ally Coalition for coordinating, and Lizzy McAlpine and Bleachers for having us) and the DC Capital Pride Festival.

Through these efforts, we reached over 700 people directly and engaged them in reflecting on the impact the LGBTQ+ community has had on them, whether they are part of that community or love someone in that community. So many folks shared that Under My Umbrella made them feel seen, loved, and want to take further action to uplift the community.

Thank you to everyone who participated in our Under My Umbrella activation–we hope it brought you as much joy and Pride as it did for us! LGBTQ+ Youth Minds Matter, today and every day.