"Finding Home" with Cyndi Lauper Addresses LGBT Youth

Monday November 7, 2011

NEW YORK, New York- November is Homeless Awareness Month and IN THE LIFE examines the plight of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) youth experiencing homelessness. The episode features Cyndi Lauper's True Colors Residence, the first permanent affordable housing to be offered to LGBT at risk youth in New York City.

"I believe that a strong society is an inclusive society and if we want to win big in this world, we better include everybody." Cyndi Lauper.

There are an estimated 1.6 to 2.8 million homeless youth in the United States, up to 40% identify as LGBT. IN THE LIFE takes a stark look at youth kicked out of their homes from New York to Illinois to California, answering the questions: What services are offered to the youth on the street? How do they cope and survive? The episode highlights The Family Acceptance Project, an organization conducting innovative research on the harmful effects of family rejection.

"I've definitely built my own little family support system here. When they get on me, it's about getting my life together and keeping me on track. It's not about who I am. They just want to make me a better person." Tiffany Viruet, left home at age 19.

Watch the complete episode online of IN THE LIFE's "Finding Home" here: http://www.itlmedia.org/home.shtml

Finding Home begins airing November 1st on public television stations across the country and will be available for free video streaming and downloadable podcasts from the In The Life Media website. To find out when it will air in your local area, to stream or download it, go to www.itlmedia.org/.

The episode features Cyndi Lauper's True Colors Residence, the first permanent affordable housing to be offered to LGBT at risk youth in New York City.

To receive the latest updates about In The Life Media, follow @ITLMedia and use the hashtag #ITLMedia.

For twenty years, In The Life Media has been a leading media organization for the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) movement. One of the nation's most honored and influential LGBT groups, In The Life Media creates social and political change by examining issues critical to LGBT individuals and providing audiences with powerful ways to advance equality within, and beyond, their communities.

Produced by In The Life Media, the Emmy-nominated series, IN THE LIFE, was the first-and remains the only-LGBT issues-oriented show on public television. IN THE LIFE is a two-time Emmy Award nominee, a Lambda Legal Liberty Award honoree, a Seigenthaler Award recipient from the National Lesbian and Gay Journalists Association and a Ribbon of Hope Award recipient from The Academy of Television Arts & Sciences: www.ITLMedia.org

IN THE LIFE is distributed by American Public Television. APT has been a leading distributor of high-quality, top-rated programming to America's public television stations since 1961. In 2009, APT distributed 56 of the top 100 highest-rated public television titles. Among its 300 new program titles per year are prominent documentaries, news and current affairs programs, dramatic series, how-to programs, children's series and classic movies.

APT also licenses programs internationally through its APT Worldwide service. In 2006, APT launched Create� - the TV channel featuring the best of public television's lifestyle programming. APT is also a partner in the WORLD� channel expansion project including its web presence at: www.worldcompass.org/.

For more information about APT's programs and services, visit: www.aptonline.org/.

For more information on Create, visit: www.createtv.com/.