Costs of sexual Orientation Discrimination in Youth

Abstract

Background: Homosexuals face stress factors associated with social prejudices such as stereotypes
expressions, images, and discrimination with a long history of degradation, marginalization and exclusion. However, few studies focused on the consequences of these behaviors in young people. So the aim of this study was to describe the costs of sexual orientation discrimination in youth. Methods: This is the product of more than seven years of ethnographic work whose first part was presented at the World Youth Festival in Barcelona 2004, under the auspices of non-governmental associations, which was entitled: "The LGB youth: A sociocultural construction on time and space", with the remarkable participation of young people from the lesbian-gay community of Zona Rosa in Mexico City. Results: Discrimination is so entrenched in our society that adolescents and young people who are part of this
population face a struggle in which it is difficult to maintain high self-esteem and a stable emotional security and feel valued or appreciated by his family and the nearby community. Conclusion: This
research has the potential to be used as a reference for the design of therapeutic strategies in order to promote healthy development and welfare of homosexual people.

Keywords: Costs, discrimination, sexual orientation, youth.