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Discriminations and Hate Crimes in The LGBT Community
Discriminations and Hate Crimes in The LGBT Community
Discriminations and Hate Crimes in The LGBT Community
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Sexual Orientation Based Hate Crimes with Relation to Perceptions & Gender-Biases What are the characteristics of a sexual orientation based hate crime? What perceptions and misconceptions are there concerning sexual orientation based crimes? In addition, how, if at all, does perception and gender play a role in the sector of sexual orientation based hate crimes? Each of these topics plays a crucial role in the attempt to understand the concept and definition of a sexual orientation based hate crime. In addition to understanding this concept, in what ways does it or does it not support the inclusion of gender roles into sexual orientation based crimes? “According to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), a hate crime is a violation of law “motivated by the offenders’ bias against a race, religion, ethnicity, sexual orientation, or disability” (FBI, 2004, p. iv)” (Stacey 3). Although this standard definition is the basis for a hate crime, the decision of whether to incorporate gender into it is highly controversial among scholars. Furthermore, the specific characteristics of sexual orientation based hate crimes are unique to their own; however, the theme of this paper focuses on the connections between not only the aspects and perceptions of sexual orientation based crimes, but also how gender roles concur with the characteristics of sexual orientation based hate crimes or hate crimes in general. Michele Stacey, from Distinctive Characteristics of Sexual Orientation Bias Crimes, conducted a research with the objective of discovering distinct aspects and patterns of hate crimes fueled by sexual orientation biases. According to the FBI, 15% of all reported hate crimes in the United States are “motivated by sexual orientation bi... ... middle of paper ... ...ough which homosexuality is denigrated, discredited, and socially constructed as invalid relative to heterosexuality (Herek, 2008; Herek, Chopp, & Strohl, 2007)” (Herek 4). This concept explicitly explained the concept in which perpetrators of sexual orientation based hate crimes base their behaviors off of. In relation to sexual orientation based hate crimes, gender-bias based hate crimes may generate from a similar stigmatism. Due to their similarity in concept, gender-bias and sexual orientation based hate crimes can become interconnected and confuse the perspective of onlookers as well as victims. Although the concept of gender-bias hate crimes is not widely accepted yet, it does appear to play a crucial role in the relationship between sexual orientation based hate crimes, gender-biases, and the multitude of perceptions in concurrence with these criminal acts.
Hate violence is a predominant issue against transgender women who wish for acceptance from society. Individuals believe they have the right to perform violence against these transgender women because of who they are. For example, in the novel Stone Butch Blues, Jess Goldberg is physically a women but prefers to live life as a male. Since Jess chooses to live life as a male, or butch, she is frequently a target of policeman and other individuals because of her identity. The society views Jess as a criminal because during the 1960’s homosexuality was illegal and it was considered a mental disorder. Apparently, our society has made much more progress today against transgender women, but they still face a multitude of hate violence. A major example
A hate crime is defined as “a crime motivated by racial, sexual, or other prejudice, typically one involving violence” (Oxford Dictionaries). Matthew Shepard’s death caused great disorder in Laramie despite the fact that it was originally an unknown town. In a sense, Laramie itself has changed due to the media attention of this event. Hate was originally “not a Laramie value” (Kaufman 15), but after this hate crime, the public has great sympathy for Matthew Shepard and distrust towards Laramie’s people. Even with all the support as well as the parade for Shepard, it is quite disappointing that there weren’t any regulations or protection offered to homosexuals, bisexuals, or transgender, after this crime. The media only showcased the event and
For years homosexuality in the United States of America has been looked down upon by citizens, religions, and even politicians. The homosexual culture, or the LGBT (Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender), has been demoralized and stuck out and lashed against by the Heterosexual community time and time again. To better understand the LGBT community we must first grasp the concept of Sexual Orientation.
Many people claim that the violence happenes not because of sexual orientation, but because it is just an act to be committed. According to the Human Rights Campaign, crimes against homosexual people resulted in four deaths in 1998 alone. James Ward, a thirty-seven year old male from Arkansas, was stabbed to death in his own home by eighteen year old Jeremy Legit. Legit claimed that Ward made two sexual advances toward him. He was sentenced to twenty years. In Honolulu, a man was beaten to death by a group of teenagers in a public shower because they believed he was gay. They were sentenced to five years in custody. In September, a transgender female was stabbed repeatedly with a broken beer bottle and set on fire. Christopher Lopez and Christopher Chavez spent five months in jail before all charges were dropped by the Fresno Police Department. On October 12, 1998 Matthew Shepard, an openly gay student at the University of Wyoming was beaten, tormented, tied to a fence, and left to die in freezing temperatures. The two men were sentenced to life in jail, only after the media had covered the trial and the whole world knew of the att...
Hate crime legislation is needed. Crimes are on the upswing, becoming more public, more violent, and more acceptable in certain places of society. Without the proposed laws there is little chance that this shall become any less prevalent. As NGLTF, the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, a well-respected agency who fights for equal rights for homosexuals, stated in their December 1997 article, the exclusion or removal of sexual orientation from hate crimes legislation by law makers is morally indefensible at a time when anti-gay violence is widespread. Failure to address this critical problem sends a dangerous message to law enforcement and the public that anti-gay violence does not exist, or worse, is somehow less reprehensible than violence against other minorities.
In 1970, a national survey said 70% of Americans believed “homosexuals are dangerous as teachers or youth leaders because they try to get sexually involved with children” (Herek). The idea that homosexuals are prone to child molestation has lessened in later years, however, another poll taken in 1999 stated 19% of heterosexual men and 10% of heterosexual women believed gay men are likely to molest children (Herek). Catholic officials are considering whether to ordain homosexuals as priests. This debate has been sparked by allegations, mostly by young boys and men, that priests sexual molested them. The Boy Scouts of America have declared homosexuals are not welcome in their organization, despite the fact that scoutmasters accused of molestation tend to be married. Fundamentalist Christians are determined to keep homosexuals away from children, claiming, “homosexuals molest children at a much higher rate than heterosexuals” (Traditional). This assertion is wrong, and an unfounded stereotype. Homosexuals are no more prone to child molestation than anyone else. In this paper, I will show the lack of a correlation between homosexuality and child molestation.
...ognized that heterosexual, as well as homosexual individuals engaged oral and anal sex (Gay and Lesbian Rights, 49). For many years it was thought that people who were gay had some sort of mental disorder, and there are still plenty of individuals who believe this. Texas has yet to repeal laws condemning persons of sodomy, as well as three other states (Gay and Lesbian Rights, 49). This is evidence that certain individuals in Texas still believe that sodomy is a crime. Many are set in their ways, that the bible states clearly the stipulation that a man with a woman is the only correct and moral pairing of human beings. With knowledge of the overlying historical ideology of justification for discrimination that Baynton discusses in his essay, the egregiousness of this historical and current oppression of those with ‘abnormal’ sexual preferences becomes even clearer.
The committee makes several recommendations in regards to changing the laws and legislations surrounding the incrimination of homosexuals for what had previously been considered sodomy. The basic premise being that “homosexual behaviour betwe...
What is meant by the term “hate crime”? Discuss with reference to at least one type of hate crime, paying particular attention to the social and cultural context in which some identities become targets.
What constitutes a hate crime? What makes a hate crime different from a crime or are they one in the same. If you believe that there is a different between a hate crime and a crime, then how can we legislate hate crimes fairly and without bias on a consist basis? When it comes to hate crimes their seems to be more questions then answers and there also seems to be a lot of uncertainty within the law itself. Hate crime laws should no longer exist in are justice system because every violent crime involves an element of hate and it is impossible to prove a person’s motive or hate in the court of law.
Hate crimes are not a new concept for society, because hate crimes have always been around. While the study of hate crimes and the laws that have been passed because of hate crimes is relatively new, hate crimes have always been around. Hate crimes were committed as far back as the 1800’s and even back to The Civil War. Hate crimes are prevalent in society today just like they were in the past; because whether the crimes are aimed towards Muslims, the gay community, or any other minority group; they are fueled by something that every person has come into contact with- prejudice. Prejudice is defined as a preconceived thought or opinion about someone. While prejudice can be positive, in the concept of hate crimes they are negative feelings, thoughts, or opinions that are aimed towards a certain religious, ethnic, race, or even sexual orientation group. The typical definition of hate crime is that a crime has been committed by a majority member against a minority member simply because the victim was a minority. However, as of recent the definition has been expanded to allow for any crime committed by bias towards the victim’s social group such as anti-gay or anti-lesbian. Hate crimes are an extreme, potential effect due to prejudice and discrimination towards someone based on ethnicity, religion, or sexual orientation. These crimes are committed against an individual or a group of individuals based solely on the fact that they are part of a group that the offender doesn’t approve of whether it is because they are a different race or following an alternative lifestyle. While the hate crimes are not something that is new in society because prejudice has always been around, the concept of a bias-crime and the legal precedent that it ha...
In certain countries such as the U.S, people discriminate against others to a certain extent based off their gender, race, and sexuality. Butler states that “to be a body is to be given over to others even as a body is “one own,” which we must claim right of autonomy” (242). Gays and Lesbians have to be exposed to the world because some of them try to hide their identity of who they truly are because they are afraid of how others are going to look at them. There are some who just let their sexuality out in the open because they feel comfortable with whom they are as human beings and they don’t feel any different than the next person. The gender or sexuality of a human being doesn’t matter because our bodies’ will never be autonomous because it is affected by others around us. This is where humans are vulnerability to violence and aggression. In countries across the globe, violence and attack are drawn towards tran...
D’Augelli, A.R. (1998). Developmental implications of victimization of lesbian, gay, and bisexual youths. In G.M. Herek (Ed.), Stigma and sexual orientation: Understanding prejudice against lesbians, gay men and bisexuals (pp.187-210). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
Between the 1950s and 1960s homosexuals had been frequently harassed and ridiculed by many people, including the police (Ojeda, 12). Homosexuals began to fight back after the civil rights and anti-war movements by asking those who were stil...
When one hears the words “LGBT” and “Homosexuality” it often conjures up a mental picture of people fighting for their rights, which were unjustly taken away or even the social emergence of gay culture in the world in the1980s and the discovery of AIDS. However, many people do not know that the history of LGBT people stretches as far back in humanity’s history, and continues in this day and age. Nevertheless, the LGBT community today faces much discrimination and adversity. Many think the problem lies within society itself, and often enough that may be the case. Society holds preconceptions and prejudice of the LGBT community, though not always due to actual hatred of the LGBT community, but rather through lack of knowledge and poor media portrayal.