How schools can bolster belonging among Black lesbian, gay, bisexual, and queer youth.

Using an intersectional framework, the current study examined how perceptions of school safety and identity valuation influenced Black lesbian, gay, bisexual, and queer (LGBQ+) students’ feelings of school belonging in three schools where the student bodies were predominantly Black. Research on school belonging has focused on the experiences of white LGBQ+ youth or examined disparities in belonging through a singular identity (e.g., exclusively race). Moreover, while research has considered the role of safety in predicting belonging, this work has not considered ways that school context might particularly speak to or affirm the identities of students coming from multiply marginalized groups. To address this gap in the literature, we present a model of school belonging that centers on the experiences of Black LGBQ+ youth. Moderated mediation analyses revealed significant indirect effects of sexual identity on school belonging through both school safety and identity valuation, and these effects depended on participant race. Recommendations for school programming that attends to the unique needs of Black LGBQ+ students are discussed.