Pink hearts were practically circling high school juniorĀ Bryceson Sandersā head when he got called to the school office in December 2018. Since being removed from his home and moving in with family friends, he had cut his hair and come out as trans. That morning, heād finally talked to the girl heād been Snapchatting with for weeks. She was amazing. He was in love.
His social worker stood in the office. She was checking him out early, and he couldnāt go back to his foster parents. āThey didnāt want me anymore,ā Sanders said. Because he was trans.
With few options in his rural, conservative county, she drove him over an hour to the nearest homeless shelter that took LGBTQ teens,Ā Act TogetherĀ in Greensboro, N.C. He put on his hoodie, his only outfit what he had on, and thought, “No one wants me.”
The surprising thing about Sanders’Ā experience is that it isnāt surprising at all. LGBTQ youth make up a significant share of foster children:Ā 30%, according to multiple studies. Researchers estimate that more than three quarters of those youth areĀ kicked out or run awayĀ from placements after foster parents reject them, the Human Rights Campaign reports.
