Understand the LGBTQIA+ news: We reveal that Trans people are dying of suicide more than the general UK population

This week we publish an investigation that has been in the works for years. What started as seemingly unconnected QueerAF stories, we started to build a picture no-one else was prepared to see. Worse – our reporting was often shut down and presented as misinformation.

Our stories about the deaths of Trans+ people, especially those that can be considered as preventable, like suicides, have been dismissed at every turn by officials, politicians and the institutions that are supposed to care for our wellbeing. The author of the Cass Report called those who used these stories to warn of the hurt, harm and pain the Trans+ community was facing "shroud wavers".

Today, we lay bare a devastating picture – which, due to our joint investigation with the Good Law Project, leaves us confident paints a picture that is only the tip of the iceberg. It draws on multiple data sets, input from NHS whistleblowers, and expert analysis. We don't draw conclusions on why any given death has happened, but the experts are clear – the policy context around Trans+ lives in the UK is a contributing factor.

What is also clear to us in the cases of preventable deaths is that they are just that. Suicide is preventable, and to truly create systems of support that ensure people are kept safe, we need to better understand the problem.

Alongside our story today, we're proud to support the launch of a new remembrance and resistance organisation, Trans Lives. The organisation is building a new national memorial to remember our Trans+ loved ones, and to raise awareness of issues which contributed to deaths. We will be working to ensure people understand the nuance, humanity and details behind the project, through accessible explainers, insightful journalism, and platforming the stories of Trans Lives. 

They're calling for your stories, so we can remember and resist together, as a community.

Preventable deaths are just that. We need better information to prevent them. Let's get started today.

In pride,
Jamie Wareham - QueerAF Founder

Understand the LGBTQIA+ headlines and keep track of the latest queer content and perspectives. The QueerAF newsletter is written by Jamie Wareham and a different queer creative each week.

💬 This week:

• Trans Deaths: In our latest investigation, with Good Law Project, we reveal that of the 50 preventable Trans+ deaths we tracked, nearly half were under 18. Suicide is preventable - help is available if you're struggling.
• Stonewall UK: The new chair of the charity, which was already facing public relations struggles both in the corporate world and the LGBTQIA+ community, shared empathy for JK Rowling this week. We explore the reaction.
• Hungary: Following the ousting of the authoritarian leader Viktor Orban, a landmark ruling in Europe could lead to the country's worst anti-LGBTQIA+ laws being withdrawn.

Skip the doomscrolling and support queer creatives instead. We are QueerAF – and so are you.

Trans people are dying of suicide more than the general UK population, new investigation reveals

TL;DR: An investigation by QueerAF and Good law Project has verified 50 suicides of trans people in the UK over the past 10 years, and this is only the tip of the iceberg. Using open-source research, FOIs, interviews with bereaved parents, data from new project Trans Lives which collects data on trans deaths, and a whistleblower who has spoken publicly for the first time, we have found that despite warning signs that trans people are dying of suicide more than the general UK population, official data remains inadequate – while rights and healthcare rollbacks continue. Suicide is preventable; resources and help are available.