Abuse in the LGBTQ+ Community

Daya strives to be a welcoming and affirming space for survivors of all gender identities, gender expressions, and sexual orientations, providing culturally specific services that consider the many parts of their identities. All services are available to survivors of any gender and sexual orientation.

 

Research shows that LGBTQIA+ members experience domestic violence at equal or higher rates compared to their heterosexual counterparts (NCACV). Along with the cultural barriers, LGBTQIA+ survivors of South Asian descent face unique risks including: 

 

• “Outing” or threatening to reveal one partner’s sexual orientation/gender identity may be used as a tool of abuse and may also reduce the survivor’s likelihood to seek help.

 

• Prior experiences of physical or psychological trauma, such as bullying and hate crimes, may make LGBTQIA+ survivors less likely to seek help.

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• South Asian cultural taboos against identifying as LGBTQIA+ may keep survivors silenced or may result in harm from their family

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• Abusers may using offensive pronouns such as “it” to refer to transgender survivors

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• Abusers may ridicule transgender survivors’ bodies, appearances, or identities