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Violence Against Transgender People: A Review of United States Data

NCJ Number
227562
Journal
Aggression and Violent Behavior Volume: 14 Issue: 3 Dated: May/June 2009 Pages: 170-179
Author(s)
Rebecca L. Stotzer
Date Published
June 2009
Length
10 pages
Annotation
This report examined available information about violence against transgender people and other gender nonconforming people.
Abstract
Results indicate that among transgender people, individuals known to the victims are physically and sexually assaulting transgender people at high rates, as well as strangers who are not only physically and sexually assaulting transgender people, but also harassing them and causing other types of violence and abuse. These acts of violence are not single individual incidents, but happen across a lifetime, and often a single individual experiences multiple acts of violence or intolerance on a daily basis. Self-report surveys, needs assessments, hot-line calls and social service records, and police reports offer some information about raw numbers of victims, and some information about the types of crimes; the data are extremely limited by methodological concerns that make it impossible to determine causes or determinants of violence. Sources of information can only offer an unclear picture of the problem without the clarity needed to effectively implement changes to law or policy; even less information is available to determine appropriate services for preventing violence or dealing effectively with violence when it occurs. Data were collected from self-report surveys and needs assessments, hotline calls and social service records, and police reports; methodological limitations are also discussed. Tables and references