Watch: Homeless for the Holidays

A glimpse into life on the streets as an LGBT youth

Rigo is a 20-year-old bisexual Latino man and Marine Corps veteran. But since he was just 14, he’s been living on the streets, often taking refuge on the subways by night. Being homeless became so difficult, he even considered committing suicide by drowning a few years ago.

Today, he’s telling his story as part of a video series – “Homeless for the Holidays” – created by the Ali Forney Center for LGBT Youth. “It is a terrible thing that so many LGBTQ youth are driven from their homes and forced into destitution in the streets,” says the series’ creator Carl Siciliano. “It is truly one of the most terrible expressions of homophobia in our time. And what they endure is made far worse by their not having access to shelter.” A new video of a homeless young person will be shared each week online between now and the New Year.

This is Rigo’s story: