Subject: NGLTF Anti-Violence Fact Sheet
From: [email-masked] Thu Apr 14 12:44:08 1994

National Gay and Lesbian Task Force Policy Institute

ANTI-GAY / LESBIAN / BISEXUAL  VIOLENCE  FACT  SHEET

April 1994 update

GENERAL  OVERVIEW   OF  ANTI-GAY / LESBIAN / BISEXUAL  VIOLENCE:

Although anti-gay violence is a long-standing problem, in recent
years it has become increasingly widespread.  As lesbians, gay men
and bisexuals have become more visible and organized, they have
made major strides towards equality and freedom.  Such increased
visibility, however, also has triggered a violent backlash.

 Reported episodes of anti-gay harassment and violence in six U.S.
cities dipped 14% from 2102 incidents in 1992 to 1813 in 1993.
This first decrease comes after five years of a dramatic rise in
anti-gay violence. Anti-gay violence rose 127 percent during the
past six years, even with the 1993 dip.  ( "Anti-Gay/Lesbian
Violence, Victimization and Harassment  in 1993," National Gay and
Lesbian Task Force Policy Institute,  1994)

 "The most frequent victims of hate violence today are blacks,
Hispanics, Southeast Asians, Jews, and gays and lesbians. Homosexuals
are probably the most frequent victims" (emphasis added, "The
Response of the Criminal Justice System to Bias Crime: An Exploratory
Review," National Institute of Justice,  U.S. Department of Justice,
1987 ).

 Among more than 2,000 lesbians, gay men and bisexuals surveyed
nationwide, 19 percent reported having been "punched, hit, kicked,
or beaten" at least once in their lives because of their sexual
orientation.  Forty-four percent had been threatened with physical
violence and 94 percent experienced some type of victimization.
Studies showing similar rates of victimization have been conducted
in the cities of Boston, Chicago, the District of Columbia,
Minneapolis, Philadelphia, Richmond, and in the states of Alaska,
Maine, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Vermont and Wisconsin.
("Anti-Gay/Lesbian Victimization," NGLTF Policy Institute, 1984)

 In a national poll of lesbians, gay men, and bisexuals, 7 percent
reported having been physically assaulted for being gay or bisexual
at least once during the past year.  Conducted via telephone using
standard survey procedures, this study may well offer the most
representative sampling of lesbiatns and gay men ever conducted in
the U.S. (San Francisco Examiner, 1989) Gay men, lesbians and
bisexuals surveyed in 1988 were victimized at least four times more
often than the average rate for the U.S. adult population.
(Philadelphia Lesbian and Gay Task Force, 1992)

AIDS - RELATED VIOLENCE:

 Since the early 1980s, gay organizations and prevalence studies
of anti-gay violence have documented numerous cases of AIDS-related
attacks against gay men, lesbians and bisexuals.  "Increasingly,
violence against those perceived to carry HIV, so-called 'hate
crimes,' are a serious problem...and are indicative of a society
that is not reacting rationally to the epidemic." ( Presidential
Commission on the Human Immunodeficiency Epidemic,  1988)

 In annual surveys of anti-gay/lesbian violence, between 8 and 17
percent of the incidents documented were AIDS-related. ("Anti-Gay/Lesbian
Violence, Victimization and Harassment,"  NGLTF Policy Institute,
annual reports, 1986-1994.)

 A national survey of people with HIV and AIDS showed that 21% have
been the target of violence outside of their homes because of
their HIV status and that 12% have suffered violence at home. ("HIV
in America: A Profile of the Challenges Facing Americans Living
with HIV," National Association of People with AIDS, 1992)

VICTIMIZATION   ON  CAMPUS:

 Although the campus environment is ideally one in which diversity
and pluralism are cherished values, anti-gay harassment is a
serious problem at many academic institutions.  For example, in
studies of lesbian, gay and bisexual victimization at Oberlin
(1990), Rutgers (1987), Penn State (1989) and Yale (1986), between
three and five percent of respondents had been the target of anti-gay
physical assaults at some point in their college careers; 16 to 26
percent had been threatened with violence and 40 to 76 percent had
been verbally harassed. ("Anti-Gay/Lesbian Violence, Victimizat
ion and Harassment in 1990," NGLTF Policy Institute, 1991)

VICTIMIZATION   IN   THE  HOME:

 The home is another context in which anti-gay harassment and
 violence occur.  According to studies that measure rates of anti-gay
abuse by relatives, between 16 and 41 percent of the respondents
had experienced verbal insults or intimidation by relatives, and
four  to  eight percent had encountered physical violence as well.
("Hate Crimes: Confronting Violence Against Lesbians and Gay Men,"
K. Berrill and G. Herek, editors. Sage Publications, 1992.)

HATE  CRIMES  LAWS:

 In 1990, the federal government enacted the Hate Crime Statistics
Act (HCSA), which requires the FBI to gather statistics on crimes
motivated by bias against the victim, including those based on
sexual orientation. The FBI has released national statistics
collected in 1991 and 1992 under the HCSA.  In 1991, the FBI reported
that 422 or 8.9% of the 4,755 reported hate crimes in 1991 were
committed against lesbians, gay men and bisexuals. Nine hundred
and thirty one or 11% of the 8,075 incidents the FBI reported for
1992 were commi

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