A fear that airing the problems among the LGBTQ population will take away from progress toward equality or fuel anti-LGBTQ bias.
Lack of appropriate training regarding LGBTQ domestic violence for service providers.
Potential homophobia from staff of service providers, or from non-LGBTQ domestic violence victims they may come into contact with.
Societal beliefs that domestic violence does not occur in LGBTQ relationships.
Several barriers exist to addressing LGBTQ intimate partner violence. Further more, members of the LGBTQ community may be denied assistance and domestic violence services as a result of homophobia, transphobia, and biphobia.īarriers to Seeking Services/Receiving Assistance Forty-five percent of victims do not report the violence they experience to police because they believe it will not help them. LGBTQ individuals may experience unique forms of intimate partner violence as well as distinctive barriers to seeking help due to fear of discrimination or bias.Īlthough the response to LGBTQ victims of domestic violence is gradually improving, the LGBTQ community if often met with ineffective and victimizing legal responses. WIthin the LGBTQ community, intimate partner violence occurs at a rate equal to or even higher than that of the heterosexual community.
Ridiculing the transgender partner’s identity as “bisexual,” “trans,” “femme,” “butch,” “gender queer,” etc.ĭomestic violence is not limited to heterosexual relationships and can affect individuals of all sexual orientations and genders.
Telling the transgender partner that he or she is not a real man or woman.
Ridiculing the transgender partner’s body and/or appearance.
Using offensive pronouns such as “it” to refer to the transgender partner.
Specific forms of abuse occur within relationships where one partner is transgender, including: Transgender victims of intimate partner violence are more likely to experience threats or intimidation, harassment, and police violence within intimate partner violence. Transgender individuals may suffer from an even greater burden of intimate partner violence than gay or lesbian individuals. Prior experiences of physical or psychological trauma, such as bullying and hate crime, may make LGBTQ victims of domestic violence less likely to see help. “Outing” or threatening to reveal one partner’s sexual orientation/gender identity may be used as a tool of abuse in violent relationships and may also be a barrier which reduces the likelihood of help-seeking for the abuse. There are several aspects of intimate partner violence which can be unique to the LGBTQ community. Unique Elements of Abuse in LGBTQ Community
11% of intimate violence cases reported in the NCADVP’s 2015 report involved a weapon.
4% of survivors have experienced sexual violence.
16% have been victims to threats and intimidation.
20% of victims have experienced some form of physical violence.
Types of Domestic Violence Affecting the LGBTQ Community
LGBTQ victims on public assistance are more likely to experience intimate partner violence compared to those who are not on public assistance.
LGBTQ white victims are more likely to experience sexual violence, compared to those who do not identify as white.
LGBTQ Black / African American victims are more likely to experience physical intimate partner violence, compared to those who do not identify as Black/African American.
Bisexual victims are more likely to experience sexual violence, compared to people who do not identify as bisexual.
Transgender victims are more likely to experience intimate partner violence in public, compared to those who do not identify as transgender.
In 2012, fewer than 5% of LGBTQ survivors of intimate partner violence sought orders of protection.
In a study of male same sex relationships, only 26% of men called the police for assistance after experiencing near-lethal violence.
26% of gay men and 37.3% of bisexual men have experienced rape, physical violence, and/or stalking by an intimate partner in their lifetime, in comparison to 29% of heterosexual men.
43.8% of lesbian women and 61.1% of bisexual women have experienced rape, physical violence, and/or stalking by an intimate partner at some point in their lifetime, as opposed to 35% of heterosexual women.
However, recent research shows that LGBTQ members fall victim to domestic violence at equal or even higher rates compared to their heterosexual counterparts.ĩ Quick Statistics about Domestic Violence and the LGBTQ Community Because the majority of the domestic violence awareness movement has focused on heterosexual relationships, members of the LGBTQ community have been largely left out of the movement.