Trump canceled a suicide hotline for LGBTQ+ callers. California wants to bring it back

A new bill has been introduced to the California State Legislature that will work to restore a critical suicide prevention hotline for LGBTQ+ individuals. The hotline was canceled across the country by the Trump administration in July.

The bill, introduced by Assemblymember Mark González (D- Los Angeles), would create a pilot program in L.A. County for a specialized LGBTQ+ hotline within the existing 988 suicide and crisis hotline, eventually leading to a statewide model. Before its cancellation, individuals could call 988 and press three to get in contact with specialized LGBTQ+ counseling and support.

"I am not waiting for this federal administration to realize what they've done," said González during a press conference on Dec. 9. "Lives are on the line right now, and every day we wait, more LGBTQ+ youth are pushed into crisis. If we stand by, thousands could be lost to suicide. Before this reckless cut, 1.5 million contacts were made to Press 3. That doesn't happen by accident - that happens because LGBTQ+ youth trust this lifeline and rely on it in their darkest moments."

988 is the country’s official suicide prevention hotline; the Trump administration ended each contract with LGBTQ+ providers who offered support to callers through the hotline.

When the “press 3” option ended, California partnered with The Trevor Project, a nonprofit focused on suicide prevention for LGBTQ+ youth, to train counselors at the state’s 988 centers to be better equipped to support queer youth.

California’s LGBTQ+ youth showed a clear need for this specialized support over the years. From July 2024 to July 2025, 73,000 calls to the subnetwork came from California. The calls from L.A. County accounted for one-third of the overall calls to 988.

“This is greatly needed, and I really do hope that not only does our state legislature take this seriously and pushes this through, but I really hope that (Governor Gavin Newsom) really stands up as an ally to the LGBTQ community, and signs this into legislation and finds the funding in the budget to make this happen,” said Dannie Ceseña, director of the California LGBTQ Health and Human Services Network.

Acknowledging the state’s $18 billion deficit, Ceseña said he knows “everyone's going to be fighting for a slice of the pie this year,” but he hopes that if passed in the Legislature, Newsom “does the right thing and sees how vital this is and finds the funding for this.”

L.A. County Supervisors Janice Hahn and Lindsey Horvath attended the press conference, showing support for the proposed legislation.

"The Press 3 option was a lifeline, and losing it has been devastating,” said Hahn. “It wasn't just a policy change - it was a message to LGBTQ+ young people that their needs didn't matter. But L.A. County will not turn its back on our LGBTQ young people. Not now, not ever. So we are going to work at every level - local, state and federal - to get this lifeline restored and protected for good."

LGBTQ+ Latino youth are struggling

Due in part, Ceseña said, to cultural stigma and gender roles, Latino youth have a lot to lose and even more to gain from having this resource available to them.

In 2024, 13% of Latino LGBTQ+ youth attempted suicide according to a survey done by The Trevor Project. 32% of Latino transgender youth attempted suicide in 2024. The number of queer Latino youth who considered suicide was exponentially higher.

“(The Latino community) is so rooted in gender ideology … and our identities are wrapped around it, and our Latinx youth, you know, they're really breaking those silos,” said Ceseña. “...Our kids, our nieces, our nephews, our children, our cousins, they're attempting suicide because they don't know how to navigate the family dynamics.”

In the current political climate, said Ceseña, it's not just machismo and traditional gender roles queer Latino youth are worried about, there are now also concerns about immigration enforcement, which ramped up this summer at the same time the hotline was canceled.

“A lot of youth are wondering, ‘when I get out of the classroom and I go home, are my parents still going to be there? Are my grandparents still going to be at home?’” said Ceseña. “So all of these compounding things are adding to the mental health distress our kids are facing and encountering.”

Whether kids call or text the hotline, it brings peace of mind that there is someone on the other end willing to listen and offer support, said Ceseña.

“It really provides that sense of relief of ‘someone cares about the fact that I'm here. The fact that they want me alive, and the fact that I'm not alone and going through all of the systemic BS that's happening in my community.’”

“It is very important that as a society we keep everyone alive and we keep everyone safe, and that includes our LGBTQ youth, and that especially includes our Latino youth,” he said. “...My hope and goal is that California will loudly and proudly say that our kids are safe in the state.”