And Queer youth are more likely to commit suicide than straight youth. They polled 40,000 Queer people between the ages 13 and 24. 40 percent of Queer youth have “seriously considered” suicide in the past year. Queer Youth Health, Depression and Suicideįrom my research: As of July 2020, two in 5 Queer youth in the non-United States have “seriously considered” suicide in the past year. He was in his second year at Harvard University. After reading one of his obituaries, one person said Tommy wasn’t depressed - Tommy had suffered from depression for years - but rather exhausted considering all that he had done. I don’t know what was going on in his head. On the sites where these comments appeared, I didn’t feel like going through the hassle of registering and then posting this bit of information, so I’ve decided to do so here.įrom the comments I read, many people seemed to think that Tommy killed himself because he was painfully in the closet and was struggling with that. The reason I’m writing this is - from the comments I read online - no one seems to make the connection and or know that Tommy’s father fought for gay marriage, so - knowing that - why would Tommy have had trouble coming out of the closet if he were Queer? I’m well aware that some people say they fully support Queer rights, then out of the other side of their mouth they say, “But I’d prefer to have straight children and not Queer children,” which strongly implies that there is something wrong with one being Queer, and their alleged support for Queer rights is suspect. And many of the things Tommy cared about are not what the typical straight guy cares about: Animals, animal rights, being vegetarian or vegan and global poverty. So did mi amigo/my friend just now when I showed it to him before posting this article. Some people have said that in one (or more) of the obituaries for Tommy Raskin that the family seemed to go out of their way to portray Tommy as straight and how he “loved the ladies.” (roll eyes) I saw a Queer boy when I saw Tommy’s picture, and my gaydar is extremely reliable. As I remember, she committed suicide about 6 weeks after his death. Mi amigo/my friend did, but all she told him was that her husband had died and she was dealing with the estate. I didn’t, but I had not talked with her at all about it. No one that I’m aware of expected her to commit suicide. She didn’t want to live anymore without him. I knew a woman - an acquaintance of mine - a few years back who committed suicide after her husband died of cancer. In Tommy’s case his depression seems to have been permanent and not temporary since he suffered with depression much of his life. I’ve worked in suicide prevention and we were trained that suicide is a permanent solution to a temporary problem. Terribly sad to read that, and I’m sure his death has destroyed their family, and it will never be the same. Please look after each other, the animals, and the global poor for me.

He left a suicide/farewell note which said, “Please forgive me. Tommy, his son, was described by his parents as a guy whose “irrepressible love of freedom and strong libertarian impulses made him a skeptic of all institutional bureaucracy and a daring outspoken defender of all outcasts and kids in trouble.” He was also an avid vegan, animal lover and writer. Did he do that because he believed Queers should have the same rights as breeders, or did he have a Queer member of his family, or both? He fought for gay marriage as a member of the House. Representative Raskin of Montgomery County - and a former constitutional law professor - has a rather progressive record in the House of Representatives. Was that the reason, or part of the reason for him committing suicide on 31 December 2020? His father is Representative Jamie Raskin (from the US state of Maryland) in the House of Representatives of the US Congress in the District of Columbia.

Tommy raskin harvard cause of death