Unique Barriers Faced by LGBTQ+ Populations

Members of the LBGTQ+ community who experience IPV can encounter a number of unique barriers to accessing and receiving supports. All of the common myths described above can cause IPV in LGBTQ+ relationships to be overlooked and often means that these identities are not considered in how services are designed and implemented. Here are some unique barriers LGBTQ+ people may face:

  • LGBTQ+ people are less likely to seek supports from law enforcement or mainstream providers, and instead often seek out informal social supports and LGBTQ+ programs.

  • LGBTQ+ people may encounter (or anticipate) homophobia/transphobia from service providers, law enforcement or from non-LGBTQ+ members of support groups.

  • Prior experiences of discrimination often prevents people from seeking help.

  • Lack of knowledge or training of IPV and LGBTQ+ populations among services providers can mean that even with good intentions, services may be more harmful than helpful. 

  • LGBTQ+ people may avoid seeking support or accessing services due to fear of outing oneself or one’s partner.

  • LGBTQ+ people may feel pressure to maintain community image, such as the fear that airing the problems among the LGBTQ+ population will take away from progress toward equality or fuel anti-LGBTQ+ bias. This can be even more pronounced in rural communities, which often have fewer LGBTQ+ people. 

  • May laws and policies are direct barriers for LGBTQ+ people (1). For example, a lack of recognition of partnership can disrupt family system (e.g., only one partner recognized as legal guardian); transgender people can be barred from accessing gender specific services due to lack of recognition of their identities; legal definitions of IPV often exclude same sex couples.

  • The common myths about IPV can be “internalized” such that LGBTQ+ people may be unlikely to recognize their own experience of IPV due to their gender or sexual identity and/or relationship dynamic.

  • Bisexual people may face barriers in accessing services designed for heterosexual people and those designed for LG populations.

  • Many LGBTQ+ experience social isolation and a lack of family/community support, which can make seeking help more difficult and can make them more reliant upon their intimate partner. Conversely, being a member of a tight-knit LGBTQ+ community can be a barrier as well. For instance, one may experience denial or disbelief from other members of this community, may have to navigate dual relationships, and may find it difficult to access LGBTQ+ inclusive services without their partner’s knowledge. 

  • Overlapping forms of oppression experienced by members of LGBTQ+ communities means that their choices about safety may be constrained, where one kind of safety might be traded for another (2). For example, one may have to choose between discriminatory violence at a shelter or intimate partner violence at home. 

Sources

  1. Brown, T. N., & Herman, J. (2015). Intimate partner violence and sexual abuse among LGBT people: A review of existing research. The William’s Institute. Retrieved from https://williamsinstitute.law.ucla.edu/wp-content/uploads/Intimate-Partner-Violence-and-Sexual-Abuse-among-LGBT-People.pdf

  2. Miller, E. C., Goodman, L. A., Thomas, K. A., Peterson, A., Scheer, J. R., Woulfe, J. M., & Warshaw, C.  (2016). Trauma-informed approaches for LGBQT* survivors of intimate partner violence: A review of literature and a set of practice observations. The GLBTQ Domestic Violence Project. Retrieved from https://pdfs.semanticscholar.org/ee3e/f17e241ad08157a68105ed13d919cda29c29.pdf