WASHINGTON — Trans and non–binary teens face the same rites of passage into adulthood as everyone else does, and live far more relatable lives than anti-LGBTQ+ bullies would have you believe. That’s the key message of “Daniel Really Suits You,” the centerpiece of a new six-figure ad campaign from the Human Rights Campaign Foundation that begins today in key media markets across the country. “Daniel Really Suits You” was produced in partnership with BRINK Media Group and Comic Relief US.

Daniel is a teen just like any other - except he is followed by a camera as he navigates young adulthood - facing a driving test where he has to parallel park the family car after practicing with his mom, and then learning how to shave with his dad before his driver’s license photo gets taken. Daniel shows through these experiences that trans stories are everyone’s stories. Watch the full video here, as well as the 15s and 30s versions.

The campaign comes as trans youth are under attack across the country, and two months before an election where their rights and freedoms, from the classroom to the doctor’s office, are on the line.

Message testing around “Daniel Really Suits You” continues to show that when people unfamiliar with transgender youth learn more about their lives, they walk away feeling more positively about LGBTQ+ people. When compared with a placebo video, testing showed a net +5 shift when asked about people’s rights to express their gender openly, with significant shifts of +17 among Americans ages 55 and up, +14 among Latino/a/e people, and +30 among those who describe themselves as moderate. Those who saw the ad were also less likely to say the country has gone “too far” in accepting transgender people and more likely to say we have not gone far enough, with a +6 net shift.

In 2023, the Human Rights Campaign Foundation (HRC) published its groundbreaking LGBTQ+ Youth Report, surveying the lives and experiences of young people in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. It showed a community facing tremendous challenges, but also with reason for hope:

• More than 80% of lesbian, gay, and bisexual youth were “out” to at least one member of their immediate family, but only a little over two thirds of transgender and non-binary youth were out.

• The report showed that when parents accept and affirm their child’s identity, the positive mental health impacts are substantial - and the harm in its absence can be life-threatening. For example, in youth who reported their family never used their name or correct pronouns, about two-thirds reported experiencing depression, while that decreased to about half of those whose family was always affirming.

• Parents and family members may be on their own journey towards acceptance - and that’s OK.