GLOV documented 86 victims of anti-glbth violence in 1997, compared to 69 in 1996. "Sadly, our 1997 statistics include five murders which, as far as we know, remain unsolved," said GLOV Executive Director Sharen Shaw Johnson.
GLOV's report was released concurrently with the annual report of the National Coalition of Anti-Violence Programs (NCAVP), of which GLOV is a co-founder. The national report documents how the glbth community does not seem to be benefiting from the double-digit decreases in violent crime reported by the U.S. Justice Department in 1997.
NCAVP also documented two disturbing national trends:
"This hardly is surprising," said Johnson, "considering how the other statistics indicate that nationally, members of our community are being victimized or re-victimized by the very people entrusted with ensuring their safety: the police."
The D.C area glbth community, in contrast, enjoyed among the nation's best relations with local police, according to reports targets of bias and bias violence filed with GLOV. Just 3% of victims complained of unjustified and 1.5% identified the incident against then as occurring in a jail or police station.
"Statistically," Johnson said, "the relationship between the D.C. glbth community and the police in 1997 was smooth but not seamless: 5% of those reporting to GLOV identified the police as their offenders. That's 5% too many - but it compares to 11% nationally."
D.C. police-gay community relations were strained further by reports in November that the FBI had arrested and charged Metropolitan Police Department Lt. Jeffrey Stowe with extortion in connection with a scheme to blackmail men he videotaped leaving a gay club, then traced using police computers. Stowe, who subsequently pled guilty and now awaits sentencing, at the time had oversight responsibility for the Metropolitan Police Department extortion squad.
GLOV joined NCAVP in calling for police sensitivity training programs to continue and for significant improvements in police disciplinary procedures. The Metropolitan Police Department this week has resumed sensitivity training for recruits; the District of Columbia City Council currently is considering two bills - by Council Members Sandra Allen and Jack Evans - to create a new Citizens' Police Review Board.
"This increased reporting level for anti-glbth youth violence actually may be good news," Johnson said, "in the sense that you must lance a boil before it can drain and heal. For years now, the few prevalence studies that have been done on violence against glbth youth, most notably in Seattle and Massachusetts, indicate they're terribly at risk. They may be among the most endangered members of our community. Their reporting the bias and bias violence many of them face literally every day will help us amass the ammunition we need to improve services to this often under-served and at-risk population."
"At the very least," Johnson said, "these numbers indicate schools may be failing in their duty to protect all their students, including glbth youth. Teachers and administrators have an obligation to keep their students safe. They can meet that obligation only by creating a climate in the schools that promotes acceptance of people regardless of their sexual orientation, gender identity or HIV status."
Reports of anti-glbth violence spiked upward in March, April: months of Ellen show "outing," Atlanta lesbian bar bombing.
Although D.C.-area statistics did not reflect the national trend, NCAVP tracking programs as a whole recorded a 30% increase in incidents in March and a 25% increase in April, over those months in 1996.
"We believe this alarming 'spike' in March and April reports nationally is related to two factors," Johnson said: "the bombing of a lesbian bar in Atlanta and the unprecedented national attention given the coming out of both actress Ellen DeGeneres and her television character Ellen Morgan.
"Part of the responsibility for inflaming this violent homophobic backlash must rest with leaders of the Radical Right, who were quoted widely as condemning Ellen and ABC," Johnson said. "We have seen before how violent rhetoric often spurs violent action; this was no exception. Once again, we call on such prominent figures to acknowledge that their language, when it is the language of hate, can indeed have severe consequences. We call on them to exercise true moral leadership by choosing their words responsibly and with care for the gay and lesbian lives they can help endanger through inflammatory speech."
Among victims of anti-gay assaults, 53% escaped injury, compared to 29% nationally; 12% were injured seriously compared to 22% nationally. However, just 2% of incidents nationally resulted in death, compared to 6% in the D.C. area.
Victims were 2.5 times more likely to be assaulted with a weapon nationally than in the D.C. area -- but when a weapon was involved in the D.C. area, that weapon was three times more likely to be a gun. Firearms accounted for 33% of all D.C.-area assaults involving weapons, compared to 9% nationally. Second most popular weapons in the D.C. area: thrown objects such as bottles, bricks and rocks, which accounted for 1 in 4 assaults involving weapons, roughly the same percentage as nationally.
Bias and bias violence in the D.C. area were slightly more likely to be serial events, such as protracted harassment and/or attacks by co-workers or neighbors: Of D.C.-area reports, 37% involved serial incidents, compared to 31% nationally. Cases involving 10 or more previous incidents were three times more prevalent nationally: 9% compared to 3% in the D.C. area. However, cases involving 6-10 previous incidents were three times more prevalent in D.C.
However, statistically, the most bias and bias violence incidents were reported by a gay (78%) white (49%) male (78%) aged 30-44 (36%) who suffered no injuries (53%) but was harassed (74%) or attacked (57%) on the street (31%) or in his own home (23%).
Still, D.C.-area police-glbt community relations were marred in 1997 by reports that former Metropolitan Police Department Lt. Jeffery S. Stowe was arrested for trying to extort money from a man who visited a gay club. Stowe reportely used police camera equipment to capture video footage of the man leaving the club, then used police computers to track his license plates. The man, presented with Stowe's demand for money, did not pay; instead, he informed the FBI. Stowe was head of the department's criminal investigation division when he was arrested; as such, he oversaw investigations of extortion and blackmail.
Also of sharp concern in the D.C. area in 1997 were murders under similar circumstances of five African/American gay males over a two-year period. The similarities raised concerns that the deaths are serial killings. These crimes are chronicled elsewhere in this report.
Note:
Statistics for 1997 for the D.C. metropolitan area were impacted by factors including a significant change in the status of the data collection agency, GLOV. In mid-1997, GLOV received federal Victims of Crime Assistance (VOCA) funding through the District of Columbia, and so transitioned from being an all-volunteer agency which responded to bias violence reports mostly in the evenings to maintaining an office and paid staff beginning in September. Accordingly, the increase in reporting during the last quarter most likely is an anomaly attributable to the daily availability of a staffed office and reporting line.
Under 18: 6%
18-22: 6%
23-29: 21%
30-44: 36% (Nationally, 30-44-year-olds accounted for 42% of all victims.)
45-64: 10%
65+: 1%
Organization: 1%
Unknown: 19%
African/American: 16 victims, 19% of total. ('96: 7 victims, 10%.)
Arab/Middle Eastern: 2 victims, 2%. ('96: 0.)
Asian/Pacific Islander: 1 victim, 1%. ('96: 0.)
Latina/o: 4 victims, 5%. ('96: 0.)
Multiracial: 4 victims, 5%. ('96: 0.)
White: 42 victims, 49%. ('96: 18, 26%.)
Jewish: 1 victim, 1%. ('96: 0).
Organization: 1 victim, 1%. ('96: 0).
Unknown: 15, 17%. (' 96: 44, 64%).
Intimidation: 40, 62%. 96: 10, 10%.
Harasssment: 48, 74%. 96: 20, 21%.
Mail/literature harassment: 3, 5%. 96: 1, 1%.
Telephone harassment: 0. 96: 0.
Subtotal (harassment) 51, 78.4% of all 65 incidents. 96: 21, 22%.
Murder: 5, 8%. Natl. .5%. 96: 7, 7%.
Sexual assault/rape: 3, 5%. Natl. 2%. 96: 0.
Abduction/kidnapping: 1, 1.5%. 96:1, 1%.
Extortion/blackmail: 1, 1.5%. 96: 0.
Bomb threat/bombing: 1, 1.5%. 96: 0.
Police entrapment: 1, .1.5%. 96: 24, 25%.
Unjustified arrest: 2, 3%. 96: 1, 1%.
Police raid: 0. 96:
Discrimination: 13, 20%. 96: 4, 4%.
Arson: 0. 96: 0.
Vandalism: 4, 6%. 96: 3, 3%.
Robbery: 5, 8%. 96: 3, 3%.
Larceny/burglary/theft: 1.5%. 96: 0.
Totals:
1997: 165 offenses = 2.5 offenses per incident.
1996: 97 offenses = 1 offense per incident.
Serial incidents:
2-5 previous incidents: 12, 18% of total incidents Nationally: 11%
6-10 previous incidents, 10, 15% Nationally.: 5%.
10 or more previous incidents: 3% Nationally: 9%
Female: 19, 14% of 134 total offenders. Natl.: 12.6%. 96: 3, 3%.
Male: 99, 69%. Natl.: 75%. 96: 27, 28%.
Unknown: 16, 12% '96: 67, 69%. Natl.: 12%.
Under 18: 6, 4%
18-22: 19, 14%. Natl.: 17%
23-29: 29, 22%. Natl.: 14%
30-44: 40, 30%. Natl.: 21%
45-64: 9, 7%.
65+: 0.
Unknown: 31, 23%
Copyright © 1998 Gay Men and Lesbians Opposing Violence, Inc. All rights
reserved.