1 Center for American Progress | LGBT Domestic Violence Fact Sheet
LGBT
1
Domestic Violence Fact Sheet
1 Disclaimer: This fact sheet focuses on domestic violence among gay and lesbian couples, but many issues overlap for bisexual and trans-gender survivors of domestic violence as well.
Introduction
Law enorcemen, governmen agencies, and he general populaion acknowledge ha domesic violence is a serious public healh problem. Te mos commonly undersood ype o abuse involves parners o he opposie gender engaging in behavior ha is boh physically and menally harmul, wih he vicim ypically being he emale. Less univer-sally recognized is he occurrence o domesic violence among parners o he same sex. Research indicaes ha domesic violence among same-sex couples occurs a similar raes as domesic violence among sraigh couples. Unorunaely, domesic violence vicims in same-sex relaionships are no receiving he help hey need. Tis is due o he lack o legal recogniion o same-sex relaionships, law enorcemen’s ailure o ideniy and properly handle domesic violence cases involving people o he same sex, and he shorage o resources available o vicims o same-sex parner domesic abuse. Lawmakers and social service providers should reconfigure he radiional model o domesic violence prevenion and reamen o include individuals involved in same-sex relaionships.
Rate of domestic violence in same-sex couples
Te majoriy o gay and lesbian amilies are happy, healhy, and well-uncioning, similar o ha o healhy heerosexual amilies. Domesic violence in same-sex amilies does occur, however. Sudies have ound ha domesic violence occurs among same-sex couples a comparable raes o sraigh couples:
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One ou o our o one ou o hree same-sex relaionships has experienced domesic violence.
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By comparison, one in every our heerosexual women experiences domesic violence in her lieime.
2 Center for American Progress | LGBT Domestic Violence Fact Sheet
Comparing domestic violence in straight and same-sex couples
Boh sraigh and gay vicims o domesic violence experience a similar patern o abuse, albei wih some noable disincions. Sraigh and same-sex domesic violence share many common characerisics:
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Te patern o abuse includes a vicious cycle o physical, emoional, and psychological misreamen, leaving he vicim wih eelings o isolaion, ear, and guil.
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Abusers ofen have severe menal illnesses and were hemselves abused as children.
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Psychological abuse is he mos common orm o abuse and physical baterers ofen blackmail heir parners ino silence.
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Physical and sexual abuses ofen co-occur.
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No race, ehniciy, or socio-economic saus is exemp.Bu domesic violence in same-sex relaionships is disincive in many ways rom domesic violence in heerosexual relaionships:
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Gay or lesbian baterers will hreaen “ouing” heir vicims o work colleagues, amily, and riends. Tis hrea is amplified by he sense o exreme isolaion among gay and lesbian vicims since some are sill closeed rom riends and amily, have ewer civil righs proecions, and lack access o he legal sysem.
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Lesbian and gay vicims are more relucan o repor abuse o legal auhoriies. Survivors may no conac law enorcemen agencies because doing so would orce hem o reveal heir sexual orienaion or gender ideniy.
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Gay and lesbian vicims are also relucan o seek help ou o ear o showing a lack o solidariy among he gay and lesbian communiy. Similarly, many gay men and women hide heir abuse ou o a heighened ear ha sociey will perceive same-sex relaion-ships as inherenly dysuncional.
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Gay and lesbian vicims are more likely o figh back han are heerosexual women. Tis can lead law enorcemen o conclude ha he fighing was muual, overlooking he larger conex o domesic violence and he hisory o power and conrol in he relaionship.
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Abusers can hreaen o ake away he children rom he vicim. In some saes, adop-ion laws do no allow same-sex parens o adop each oher’s children. Tis can leave he vicim wih no legal righs should he couple separae. Te abuser can easily use he children as leverage o preven he vicim rom leaving or seeking help. Even when he vicim is he legally recognized paren an abuser may hreaen o ou he vicim o social workers hosile o gays and lesbians, which may resul in a loss o cusody. In he wors cases he children can even end up in he cusody o he abuser.
3 Center for American Progress | LGBT Domestic Violence Fact Sheet
Challenges to addressing same-sex domestic violence
Te generally acceped model o a male aggressor and emale survivor canno be easily applied when dealing wih vicims in same-sex relaionships. Same-sex couples here-ore ace cerain impedimens o having heir domesic violence issues recognized and addressed ha sraigh couples do no:
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Authorities often lack the knowledge of how to handle domestic violence cases involving people of the same gender.
An officer may misake wo males living ogeher or roommaes, or example. And officers may ail o repor an inciden o domesic violence since he wo paries involved may be unwilling o divulge heir relaionship saus. In some cases he vicim will be deained insead o he aggressor because he later was physically smaller.
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Same-sex partners lack the resources needed to help them get out of abusive relationships.
While domesic violence shelers appear o be increasingly responsive o he needs o lesbian vicims, gay male vicims are rarely admited. Services or gay men are pracically nonexisen.
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Survivors of same-sex domestic violence lack the same legal recognition and protec-tion as straight survivors.
Currenly, a pachwork o sae laws exis ha offer some proecions o gay and lesbian vicims o domesic violence. Some laws cover gay and lesbian vicims explicily in heir ani-domesic violence laws, while ohers cover gay and lesbian vicims hough gender-neural language. A ederal law is needed, however, o provide uniorm and comprehensive proecions or all same-sex couples.
Policy solutions for addressing same-sex domestic violence
A number o policy soluions would address he challenges ha boh vicims and survi- vors o same-sex domesic violence ace. Tey include:
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New legal inerpreaion o exising domesic violence laws a all levels o governmen ha incorporaes same-sex couples wihin he definiions o domesic violence and relaed paries.
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Providing local, sae, and ederal unding o educae law enorcemen and social service providers abou LGB people, esablish same-sex domesic violence prevenion pro-grams, and suppor organizaions ha specifically address same-sex domesic violence.
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Mandaed culural compeency raining or organizaions receiving ederal dollars o implemen domesic violence prevenion or reamen programs.
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