On all sides: How race, ethnicity & gender influence health risk for transgender students of color

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This resource is available in English only.

This 2020 report developed for Advocates for Youth examines how transgender students of colour experience health risk, with the aim of engaging educators, policymakers, researchers and advocates. Authors seek to answer two primary research questions:

Among those health risk behaviours and outcomes that differ significantly between transgender and cisgender students, which also vary among different racial and ethnic groups?
Among those health risk behaviours and outcomes that differ significantly in the first question, which are also statistically significant at the intersections of race, ethnicity, and transgender identity?

The report examines data from 22 sites that administered the Youth Risk Behavioural Surveillance Survey (YRBSS) and used the CDC’s recommended transgender question, or a modified version of the question. The dataset, which includes 2,555 transgender students of whom 60% identify as students of colour, provides the opportunity to examine health risk through an intersectional lens, in terms of race, ethnicity, and transgender status. Findings are supplemented with a review of the literature.

Topics explored include:

Sadness and Suicidality
Driving
Sexual Health
Sexual and Dating Violence and Sexual Assault
Alcohol Use

Tobacco Use
Marijuana Use
Other illicit drug use
Food, weight and physical activity
Other Health and Well-being

Across the literature, transgender students experience greater health risk and outcomes for health categories, when compared to cisgender students, other adolescents, or adults. By demonstrating how useful a transgender status question can be, authors hope preserve and extend its use.

Stakeholder Recommendations:

For educators: Develop inclusive educational programs
For policymakers: Increase access to education for transgender immigrant students
For researchers: Include gender identity questions on population-based surveys
For advocates: Build intersectional coalitions to reduce health risk and improve outcomes

Use this resource to:

Increase awareness of the value of a transgender status question in survey data
Better understand intersectionality for transgender students of colour
Inform the design of culturally responsive education and health policies to meet the needs of transgender students of colour

Related resources:

Beginning from within: Promoting the health of trans, Two-Spirit and/or gender-diverse youth (2020)

Addressing stigma: Towards a more inclusive health system (2019)

Let’s talk: Racism and health equity (2018)

Public Health Speaks: Intersectionality and health equity (2016)

Reference:

Perry, JR and Frazer, S (2020). On All Sides: How Race & Gender Influence Health Risk for Transgender Students of Color. Washington, DC: Advocates for Youth. Download Date. https://actionnetwork.org/forms/on-all-sides

Tags: 2SLGBTQI+ health, Racism/racialization, Sex & gender, Stigma, discrimination, Students, Document, Report / Document