NCJ Number
93289
Date Published
1983
Length
16 pages
Annotation
The public has long viewed homosexuals as both victims and victimizers.
Abstract
Like other minorities, homosexuals as a group are blamed for the wrongdoing of any individual member of the group regardless of whether or not the aberrant behavior is typical for the entire group. Homosexuals are also stereotyped in a negative manner which includes the role as victimizer, for example, through involvement in adult-child relationships. The public also views homosexuals as victims. They are sometimes being victims of blackmail and are often denied civil rights granted to others. Throughout history, homosexuals have also been the victims of persecution. Some researchers have also suggested that they have also been beaten, robbed, and murdered in disproportionate numbers. Many problems of definition and collection of statistical data exist in studying homosexuals. However, homosexuality is clearly one focus of research on the victimization of stigmatized persons. Homosexuals' victimization of other homosexuals is one aspect of this subject. Victimization appears to produce a reactive rage that feeds an offender mentality, and offenders then choose victims who are the most vulnerable, the most proximate spatially and socially, and the most readily accessible. This phenomenon may have a parallel in victimization among racial and ethnic groups as well. Notes and a list of 29 references are provided.