There’s a movement to revamp the Violence Against Women Act to include greater protections for LGBT victims of sexual assault. As this blog post from the Washington Post points out, these modifications are direly needed.
Only 24 states use federal funding to support LGBT-specific anti-violence programs, but anti-gay violence is everywhere. This piece starts off with a chilling account of a violent relationship between two women, one of whom simply didn’t know where to turn when things were at their worst.
The rate of domestic violence among LGBT couples is about the same as for heterosexual ones — an estimated 25 to 33 percent experience abuse in their lifetimes, according to National Coalition of Anti-Violence Programs. But LGBT victims are significantly less likely to seek out help: 45 percent of them have been turned away from domestic violence shelters, and only 7 percent call the police after an incident of domestic violence. LGBT women are particularly at risk: they’re victims of the majority of murders related to domestic violence in the gay community, the coalition says.
This actually does happen all the time, but it’s clearly underreported, and mainstream media outlets may be hesitant to cover it. This article points out why the suggestions to the Violence Against Women Act are needed right now, especially as the world slowly tilts left on gay rights.
Give this story a read. It’s a little-heard perspective on an important issue.