Thread by @shahmiruk

1/ The LGBTQI community is rife with suicide. We're killing ourselves across the globe because our daily lives are riddled with despair, loneliness and hate. So here's some of my thoughts... #WorldSuicidePreventionDay

2/ I spent my childhood battling thoughts that almost drove me to the edge. Being gay in Pakistan was a daily struggle. Despite having people that loved me unconditionally I was fighting day and night with a debilitating heteronormative pressure.

3/ Moving to Britain helped a little, but it didn't absolve me of that struggle. In Pakistan I feared murder, my own self-hate and the wrath of colonial laws. Here, I was faced with an LGBTQ community that was riddled with racism.

4/ Instead of battling oppressive cultural beliefs, I began battling the suffocating environment for LGBTQ people of colour on top of my immigrant imposter syndrome.

5/ Understanding intersections is crucial to understanding suicide in the LGBTQ community, and more importantly, the plight of queer people of colour. QPOC are killing themselves around the world because the pressure is too much, the pain too harsh.

6/ LGBTQ youth seriously contemplate suicide at almost three times the rate of heterosexual youth. We're more likely to kill ourselves because our mental health is sucked dry by heteronormative societies.

7/ For queer people of colour around the globe, being outed often leads to homelessness, ostracisation and suicide. I experienced the pain of that first hand.

8/ The first thought I had when I was outed, despite living in a 'free' society, was..."maybe if I'm dead, this will go away". No one can understand what I felt unless you are muslim, brown and queer. And it is absolutely imperative to understand this.

9/ You can not understand the pain and struggle of those that contemplate suicide unless you, yourself have had their lived experience. No one commits or considers suicide for the same reason.

10/ Each individuals circumstances are dependent on the pain and struggle they have lived through. Which is why society as a whole needs to do better in acknowledging that when someone says they are hurt, offended or upset by something you say or do, then you need to listen.

11/ It isn't just about asking your friends if they are OK. We all need to start deconstructing the systems in place that may contribute to the decline of peoples mental health. That includes racism, homophobia, ableism, classism, sexism.

12/ A more empathetic society is needed for there to be less suicide. But we can't be an empathetic society if we don't start listening to the people who are telling you that they are in pain.

13/ If white people understood how painful being outed is for people like me, then Downing Street wouldn't have ever risked putting me in that position.

14/ If cis-gendered people tried to understand the struggles of black trans women, less black trans women would be committing suicide. We all need to do better by being vigilant in calling out systems that are destroying the mental health of our communities.

15/ Start listening to us.