7 days ago
- Entertainment
- New Indian Express
Pedro Pascal, Ariana Grande, Dua Lipa, among 100 others, sign letter opposing Trump's funding cuts to LGBTQ Youth Suicide Prevention
Actors Pedro Pascal, Ariana Grande, Dua Lipa and Sabrina Carpenter, among 100 other Hollywood celebrities signed an open letter slamming the proposed move by US President Donald Trump to cut funding for youth suicide prevention programmes for queer people.
The celebrities had urged Trump and Congress to "protect funding for the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline's LGBTQ+ Youth Specialised Services in the Fiscal Year 2026 budget." The letter came after a leaked draft of the budget of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services was released.
"As artists, creators, and public figures, our platforms come with responsibility. And today, that responsibility is clear: we must speak out to protect the mental health and lives of LGBTQ+ youth," the beginning of the letter reads, in part. "We will not stay silent," they affirmed.
The letter goes on to explain that since its launch in 2022, the 988 program has helped connect "nearly 1.3 million crisis contacts with life-saving, affirming care to LGBTQ+ young people during their most vulnerable moments. Suicide among LGBTQ+ youth is a public health crisis, and it should be treated as such."
