Same Sex and Transgender Sexual Assault
Just as in any other community, sexual violence has scarred the lives of many people who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender. Some of us within this community were sexually abused as children by a parent or a "friend" of the family. Some of us were assaulted as teens by an older adolescent or adult. Others of us have been sexually harassed - either in a predominately heterosexual environment or in a predominately queer environment. And some of us have been (or are currently being) sexually violated within an abusive romantic relationship. No matter what kind of relationship you are in, no matter how you identify your gender or sexuality, sexual violence is an issue that affects us all in some way or another.
Different issues that prevent people in LGBT communities from seeking help:
- Fear of heterosexist response in medical and criminal justice systems
- Fear of “outing” oneself
- Fear of isolation from community
- Fear of reinforcing negative stereotypes
- Lack of community resources
Sexual violence does happen in the GLBT community. There is a tendency for us to believe that all GLBT people are "safe"; that sexual violence could not happen within a same sex relationship; that sexual harassment only happens between straight people. And that even if it does happen in our community, we should keep it quiet because we have enough abuse coming from the outside. But, by keeping sexual violence within the GLBT community silent, we are isolating people. We are reinforcing the messages our society sends survivors of sexual violence - it's your own fault, you just have to live with it, you are alone, that wasn't really rape.
