This New App Helps LGBTIQ Youth Feel Safe Coming Out

A new website and app lets LGBTIQ people test the waters with their friends and family when deciding whether or not to come out. Launching in April this year, You're Accepted lets users anonymously message their friends and family, in order to gauge their reaction. The hope, according to its creators, is that the service will help young people feel supported, allowing them to more confidently take that difficult first step.

The project is a joint initiative between queer youth group Minus18 and creative agency GPY&R. The website allows anonymous users to message people – via Facebook, SMS or email – and ask whether those people would support them if that user decided to come out.

"Their friends and family members are then given a notification, can read the message and choose to reply with a message of support, which is then moderated by our team," Minus18 CEO Micah Scott told SBS. "The LGBTI person can then read that message, and either choose to come out to them, or simply find comfort in the fact that they will have someone supportive for when they do come out."

According to Scott, one of the most common questions young LGBTIQ people struggle with whether or not their friends and family will accept them for who they are. "Coming out can be an amazing experience too, but it's often hard to take that first step when you're not sure how people will react," he said. "It's been really exciting to see the impact the platform has made already."

To find out more about You're Accepted, visit www.youreaccepted.com.au.

Via SBS.