On March 7, the New York City Council approved a package of bills that would extend access to youth services and shelter to homeless young adults, many of whom identify as LGBT. If Mayor de Blasio signs the bills into law, New York City can set an example for cities across the U.S. trying to patch up the cracks that homeless and runaway youth fall into on the road to independent adulthood.
Studies have consistently shown that LGBT youth are at a heightened risk of homelessness, in large part because their families have rejected them because of their sexual orientation or gender identity. In surveys, as many as 40 percent of runaway and homeless youth identify as LGBT.