History of violence against LGBT people in the United States


The history of violence against LGBT people in the United States is made up of assaults on gay men, lesbians, bisexual, and transgender individuals, legal responses to such violence, and hate crime statistics in the United States of America. Those targeted by such violence are believed to violate heteronormative rules and contravene perceived protocols of gender and sexual roles. People who are perceived to be LGBT may also be targeted.
The violence that has occurred over the existence of the LGBT community has been very extensive considering how long the incidents have occurred. Since the 1969 Stonewall riots against one of the many police raid on gay bars, there have been many more reports and instances of violence against LGBT people in the United States. Dozens of transgender and gender nonconforming individuals are murdered every year in the US, and the murder of black transgender women is especially prevalent. Attacks against LGBT people revolve around the idea that there is a normal way for people to live, which encompasses all expressions, desires, behaviors, and roles associated with the gender each person was assigned to at birth. Throughout time the number and statistics of these acts of violence have increased greatly due to the belief of religious and political views, or perhaps other factors as well. Political protests have been done to try and crack down on more of these attacks with a greater penalty.
A hate crime is defined as the victimization of individuals because of their actual or perceived race, ethnicity or national origin, sexual orientation, religion, gender, gender identity or disability. Hate crimes against LGBTQIA people often occur because the perpetrators are homophobic or transphobic. Violence targeted at people because of their perceived sexuality can be psychological and physical up to and including murder. These actions may be caused by cultural, religious, or political mores and biases. Victims of violence who are both LGBT and a person of color may have trouble distinguishing whether the violence was based on their sexuality/gender identity or whether racism also played a significant factor. An intersectional approach would examine how these forms of discrimination combine in unique ways.
The United States had passed the in hopes to develop a systematic approach for documenting and understanding these hate crimes against LGBT in the United States. had also implemented a data collection program and integrated the system under their program and .

Federal hate crime statistics

In 2014, the FBI reported that 20.8% of hate crimes reported to police in 2013 was founded on perceived sexual orientation. Sixty-one percent of those attacks were against gay men. Additionally, 0.5% of all hate crimes were based on perceived gender identity. In 2004, the FBI reported that 14% of hate crimes due to perceived sexual orientation were against lesbians, 2% against heterosexuals and 1% against bisexuals.
The FBI reported that for 2006, hate crimes against gay people increased from 14% to 16% in 2005, as percentage of total documented hate crimes across the U.S. The 2006 annual report, released on November 19, 2007, also said that hate crimes based on sexual orientation are the third most common type, behind race and religion.
In 2008, 17.6% of hate crimes were based on the victim's perceived sexual orientation. Of those crimes, 72.23% were violent in nature. 4,704 crimes were committed due to racial bias and 1,617 were committed due to sexual orientation. Of these, only one murder and one forcible rape were committed due to racial bias, whereas five murders and six rapes were committed based on sexual orientation.
Santa Clara County Deputy District Attorney Jay Boyarsky attributed a surge in anti-gay hate crimes, from 3 in 2007 to 14 in 2008, to controversy over Proposition 8. However, the DDA cautioned against reading too much from small statistical samples, pointing out that the vast majority of hate incidents do not get referred to the District Attorney's office.
In 2011, the FBI reported 1,572 hate crime victims targeted based on a sexual orientation bias, making up 20.4% of the total hate crimes for that year. Of the total victims, 56.7% were targeted based on anti-male homosexual bias, 29.6% were targeted based on anti-homosexual bias, and 11.1% were targeted based on anti-female homosexual bias.
The United States, however, does not require a mandatory report on hate crimes; meaning the data gathered over the years is not an accurate representation of the correct number of hate crimes against LGBT Americans. Community-based anti-violence organizations are extremely valuable when reporting hate crimes.
In recent years LGBT violence has been on the rise in the United States. The biggest act of violence occurred in Orlando when Omar Mateen attacked the Pulse nightclub in the city killing 49 and wounding 53 others. This was not only the biggest attack on LGBT people but one of the biggest mass shootings in the United States history. By June 2018, the FBI had declined to classify the incident as an anti-gay hate crime, as evidence suggested that Mateen had scouted several different targets before choosing Pulse, and that he did not know it was a gay nightclub. There were also 28 Americans who identified as LGBT and were killed in 2016 alone. All of these are crimes are considered hate crimes and the United States has passed some legislation on this front. In the late 1990s the Hate Crime Statistics Act was passed. This was passed in order to try to prevent farther hate crimes and come up with a punishment for people who do commit them. While this act was passed local police officers often have no training or way to tell if it was hate crime based on sexual preference or a difference cause. There has also been no way hate crime legislation passed for just sexual preference. So if someone did commit a hate crime against a person apart of the LGBT community it would not be considered a hate crime against the LGBT community just a regular hate crime.

Measures to stop violence against LGBT people

Shelters and organizations may provide safety for victims, or potential victims, of violence. Lambda Legal has published a list of resources in all 50 states that may be useful for LGBT members seeking help or protection. Organizations such as the True Colors Fund and the Human Rights Campaign are safe spaces for the homeless LGBT youth to gain healthcare, housing, and education. Violent acts, including domestic and sexual abuse, towards the LGBT community may lead to depression, PTSD, suicidal behaviors, or trauma. The organizations located throughout the United States could provide safety and care for these individuals.

Violence against LGBT people since 1969

1960–1969

On April 29, 2009, the U.S. House of Representatives voted to extend federal law to classify as "hate crimes" attacks based on a victim's sexual orientation or gender identity. The U.S. Senate passed the bill on October 22, 2009. The Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act was signed into law by President Barack Obama on October 28, 2009.