Domestic Violence in the GLBT community

During October, campuses around the nation sponsor events and activities to increase awareness about a variety of issues. Besides GLBT History (Pride) Month, it is also Domestic Violence Awareness Month. Our Counseling Services office along with the Women's Resource Center and Women's Studies Institute have been the most proactive departments addressing domestic violence education and resources. The overlap of these awareness months - GLBT History & Domestic Violence - is something that the Allies Program and others at the University have not had the chance to focus on, but we hope to provide more education in the future.

Other venues allow for Allies and their constituents to learn about domestic violence issues in the GLBT community:

The Chicago Sun-Times features an article today about the health concerns of partner abuse among men who have sex with men (MSM). The article gives an overview of the findings from the study done by two faculty members of the University of Illinois at Chicago who recognized that there is "growing evidence that intimate partner abuse among gay andbisexual men may pose a significant threat to health outcomes, including sexuallytransmitted diseases and HIV." An article detailing the study can be found on pages 681-690 of the most recent issue of the Journal of Urban Health.

There are also numerous websites that can provide helpful information about what to do when faced with intimate partner violence and education about this subject for gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people

The Gay Men's Domestic Violence Project - http://www.gmdvp.org/ has an informational brochure to help a person understand if they are a victim of partner abuse and what to do if so.

The Network/La Red - http://www.thenetworklared.org/ - while it is an organization serving lesbian and bisexual women and transgender persons in the Boston area, The Network/La Red prides itself on the contributions it has made to promoting awareness of domestic/intimate partner violence education and services even more broadly.

The National Coalition of Ant-Violence Programs - http://www.ncavp.org/ - among the many types of violent acts committed against GLBT individuals, the NCAVP addresses domestic violence with GLBT relationships. In July 2007, NCAVP released the 2006 National Report on LGBT Domestic Violence.