Both local and national same-sex domestic-violence numbers jumped in 2001, but the increase could be due in part to better reporting. Chicago's Horizons Community Services Anti-Violence Project, in conjunction with the National Coalition of Anti-Violence Programs, released their 6th annual report on domestic violence LGBT communities in 2001.
The report contains information compiled from 12 agencies serving LGBT and HIV-affected victims in nine regions. There were 5,046 cases of domestic violence documented in the 2001 report, which represented a 25% increase from the 4,048 cases in 2000. This year's report also contains an updated analysis of the availability of protective orders for LGBT domestic violence survivors.
Representatives attributed the 25% increase largely to use of new methods for outreach and expansion of service provision at some of the participant agencies.
Horizons had another significant increase in the number of domestic violence incidents reported. There was an 84% increase from 109 incidents in 2000 to 201 in 2001. There was a significant increase in the 30-44-year-old bracket from 59 to 107, and in the 23-29-year-old bracket from 11 to 44. There was also an incident reported in the 65 and older bracket, where last year there was none. Numbers of African American survivors reporting incidents increased from 40 to 100.
Sara Griffin, Anti-Violence Project Psychotherapist, said: "Some of the challenges that LGBT domestic violence survivors continue to face in Chicago is lack of adequate services, especially for the men in our community. What do you tell someone who is trying to get out of an abusive relationship and there is no domestic violence shelter?"
Horizons also reported two murders for 2001, up from none reported for 2000, one of which took place in Milwaukee. "There is currently no Anti-Violence Project in Milwaukee," Lisa Tonna, Director of Advocacy and Legislative Affairs, stated. "Horizons staff were able to provide critical assistance to the community providing support and technical assistance to help them organize and respond effectively to the incident that also had elements of hate motivation too."
A collaboration between Horizons, the YWCA Metropolitan Chicago LGBT Sexual Assault Program, Howard Brown Health Center and the Chicago Connections Women's Program has enabled AVP to expand roll call trainings to the South Side and increase outreach to communities of color through a groundbreaking media campaign they hope to expand next year with increased funding. NEWS ROUNDUP
The Chicago Tribune reported Sept. 20 on a child custody case in Cook County Circuit Court involving a boy, his mother, who conceived him through artificial insemination by a donor, and a father who is a transgender male. "The mother's attorney argues that because Illinois does not recognize same-sex marriages, the 42-year-old father, who was born a female but has been living as a male for 20 years, has no legal standing to argue for custody," the paper reported. Cook County Public Guardian Patrick Murphy said the only key issue is that the boy knows him, accepts him and loves him as a parent. "It doesn't matter if he's male or female, husband or wife. What matters is that he's a parent ... and you can't come in now and rip that apart. The only thing that is important is that there's a 10-year-old who considers this man his dad and wants to live with him," said Murphy.
Agence France-Presse reports that U.S. "have identified a group of proteins that naturally block HIV from developing into AIDS, a discovery that could revolutionize HIV treatment." The Aaron Diamond AIDS Research Center team identified a group of proteins found in a small percentage of HIV-positive people known as long-term non-progressors.
The National and Lesbian Task Force is among many calling for the discharge of the Local Law Enforcement Hate Crimes Prevention Act, to allow for a vote.
The Human Rights Campaign announced a series of events to mark the retirement of Sen. Jesse Helms, R-N.C. See www.hrc.org/volunteer/hparty/index.asp.
Reuters reports that a U.S. appeals court has ruled that gays may use federal civil-rights laws to sue for alleged sexual harassment. The full 9th Circuit Court of Appeals, in an en banc ruling that overturned a decision by a smaller panel of appellate judges, said a victim's sexual orientation was irrelevant in cases of sex harassment brought under Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act.
Gfn.com News reports that nearly two out of five gay and lesbian adults in America's workplaces report facing some form of hostility or harassment on the job, according to a new national study. The online survey by Out & Equal Workplace Advocates showed almost one out of every 10 gay or lesbian adults also state they were fired or dismissed unfairly from a previous job, or pressured to quit a job because of their sexual orientation.
