(Jewish Group) A young gay Orthodox man died by suicide.

[Behind the Aegis]

A young gay Orthodox man died by suicide. We must confront how Jewish teachings harmed him

One of the hardest parts of my job is attending the funerals of young Orthodox Jews who have died by suicide. As clinical director of JQY (Jewish Queer Youth), I’ve unfortunately been to too many of them.

This week, I am grieving the death of 25-year-old Herschel Siegel of Atlanta, who died this past Friday before Shabbat.

Herschel was not the first young Orthodox person to die by suicide this year. It is especially painful that, even when victims were openly gay themselves, the Orthodox community too often refuses to acknowledge or value this part of who they were.

The Trevor Project just released its 2023 National Survey on the Mental Health of LGBTQ Young People. Based on the experiences of over 28,000 queer youth across the U.S., the survey found that 41% of LGBTQ+ young people seriously considered attempting suicide in the past year.



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This makes me mad and sad. This has to stop!

[Maraya1969]

1. There is no reason for this.

[slightlv]

2. How very sad. I did not know this about Judaism. Thank you for educating me.

I just read what I wrote, and then looked back over what you wrote. You wrote "Orthodox Judaism." For better or worse, I equate Orthodox Judaism with Christianity's Evangelicals and Charismatics. Is this a valid generalization? I'm of neither religion, so pardon my ignorance. Is there more acceptance in the other Judaic sects? Again, thanks for bringing this info.

[Phil01]

3. Ex-Orthodox and gay here.

I didn't kill myself when I was young, but I entirely get this.

Instead I repudiated my allegiance to the abusive father in the sky.

Still 100% Jewish.