It isn't all unicorns and rainbows
There is a perception among some people that "alternative lifestyles" and choices of sexuality have no downside and anybody who suggests otherwise is a bigot. Many of the people who scream "BIGOT!" are feelz people and not numbers people.
Here are some numbers
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| Rate of victims by self-identified gender for selected crimes using "Straight" as the basis (Source). Raw numbers available at the source. |
One puzzling thing about this data is the significantly higher rates of violent crimes perpetrated against Bisexuals (sometimes seen as Gay-Lite) than for either Straight or L/Gs. Those higher rates are across-the-board and relatively stable with L/Gs typically being victimized at roughly 2X the rate of Straight people while Bisexuals are victimized at 8X rates. Looking at Rape-Sexual Assault, a person who identifies as Bisexual is 18 times more likely to be a victim of this crime than a straight person and 9 times more likely than a Lesbian/Gay.
One explanation that was proposed for this disparity was that Lesbian/Gay populations might be less likely to report certain crimes, particularly those crimes that might be sexual in nature. If that were a major factor then the rates for Rape/Sexual Assault and Domestic Violence for L/G would be at the bottom of the data rather sort of in the middle.
Another explanation that was proposed was that Bisexuals are less discriminating in their partners (i.e. desperate). As Woody Allen once noted, "Becoming Bisexual automatic doubles your chances of getting a date for Saturday night."
A couple of incidental factors that inflate the numbers for Bisexuals is that 90% of Bisexuals are women and women are more typically chosen as victims than men (less homicides which are often driven by the drug trade). Another factor is that a disproportionate share of women Bisexuals are Black and the Black population is more likely to be victims of violent crime. (Source of claims about demographics of Bisexuals).
Rank Speculation
People on the Autistic spectrum are grossly over-represented in the population of Transgenders. While it is speculative to assume that people who have impediments to "reading" emotions in other people and decoding social-situation are over-represented across the entire range of LGBT it is not out-of-the-question.
For example, a person who is adverse to "decoding" would find the stereotype of "All gay men are kind, gentle, sensitive and empathic" (for instance) to be very attractive because it would absolve them of needing to decode individuals. That "permission" to turn off their discernment is very attractive to opportunistic predators. "I am Gay" or "I am Bi" becomes the equivalent of "Open Sesame" to penetrating the layered defenses that protect us.
Uber Progressive label people like me "homophobics" when we try to warn flamboyants that rainbow-hair and nail polish and foppish attire is the equivalent of chumming for sharks at the local beach.
Long ago, when i was a foster care worker, one of my clients was a gay teen age boy who was going to a rough Detroit high school. He was constantly getting beat up because he "had to be true to his nature" I couldnt convince him that he could be "true to his nature" without swishing and doing his nails. One of my worst days in that profession was getting a call that he was HIV positive. In the 80's that was a death sentence. The other worst day was getting a call that one of my foster kids had hung herself.
ReplyDeleteI am sure there are no words that can describe that pain.
DeleteLet me assure you that you did not fail. Their lives were better because you were there for them.
For whatever reasons...reasons that cannot be understood by men...the Devil himself seems to take a special interest in some souls and tortures them constantly.
If you prolonged their life by a single minute or gave them a moment of peace and respite so they could catch their breath, you and your wife were everything God could ask of you.
Any data on perps?
ReplyDeleteThe only info on perps is that domestic violence had a subcomponent broken out for "intimate partner violence". According to the report, about 30% of L/G domestic violence was at the hands of their intimate partner and about 60% of domestic violence experienced by Bisexual and Straight people was at the hands of their intimate partner and
DeleteInteresting and unfortunately not surprising.
ReplyDeleteI wonder a couple of things:
1. Do these groups tend to cluster in cities, which are naturally higher crime areas? AFAIK they do, and that could account for part of the difference.
2. Many of these people are avoiding anything seen as "masculine". This could make them look soft and easier targets than others, and pretty much every criminal looks for a "softer" target over a "harder" one. As mentioned above, they tend to do things to get noticed, and not all notice is good...
Any thoughts?
Jonathan
It is my perception based on flags and signage that the less affluent LGBT populations are most concentrated in the neighborhoods with the oldest houses that still have a white majority.
DeleteIt is also my perception that more affluent LGBT seem to like condominiums and university towns.
While it may be interesting or enlightening to discuss which groups are more or less violent or victimized the ultimate reality is that humans, like chimpanzees are inherently violent and have to be taught or restrained in order to keep violence curbed. Social order exists in large part to stem this inherent tendency. And when violence increases it's a good indicator that the social order is failing. We are what we are....and we have to CHOOSE to not embrace that violent inner person who so many can't seem to control.
ReplyDeleteYou don't have to answer this, but if I had to guess, I would guess that you worked in Emergency Medicine and sometimes see patients after midnight.
DeleteFurs, bisexuals, and LGBT rainbows can be accepting as long as the outsider's ideology is mostly in alignment. I think part of the stats can be attributed to a downward spiral of factors of which LGBT / sexual status is the obvious. These groups generally frequent events like orgies and raves that are populated with people that often have poor judgement, moral character, and a high degree of mental instability. Being more open in a community that is often morally questionable and making bad decisions is an exercise in bad judgement and is a recipe for disaster.
ReplyDelete- Arc
Mrs ERJ told me she watch a young man with multi-colored hair put motor oil into every opening on a vehicle motor...Washer fluid, transmission, power steering, motor..and then pour the rest of it over the top.
DeleteShe asked why. The young man said he had a lot of lights on his dash and this is how HE fixed them.
It is a mind-set. "I make my own rules and it will work out because I believe in magic, that all it takes to bend reality is to want something badly enough"