Eddie Redmayne visits homeless gay youth centre after Oscars
By Ben Kelly
Eddie Redmayne visited the Los Angeles LGBT Centre, which supports homeless LGBT youths in the Californian city, after attending the Oscars on Sunday night.
The actor, who missed out on the Best Actor prize to Leonardo DiCaprio, was nominated for his performance in The Danish Girl, in which he plays Lili Elbe, one of the first people in the world to undergo gender reassignment.
Redmayne toured the centre yesterday, met with the CEO Lorri L. Jean, and reportedly had breakfast with 70 LGBT young people.
In a video he filmed during his visit, Redmayne asks the public for their support.
“To ensure they never have to turn a young person in need of life saving support away, I hope that you’ll join me in supporting the Los Angeles LGBT Centre’s great work,” he says.
A hugely disproportionate 40% of the homeless young people in Los Angeles are LGBT, and Eddie points out that “the problem is especially acute for transgender youth, who are far more likely to suffer violence and abuse on the streets, and who have a much more difficult time finding employment.”
The LGBT Centre is open seven days a week, provides young people with three meals a day, clothing, counselling, showers, medical care, employment support, and hosts the only beds in Los Angeles specifically for LGBT youth.
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