Are Anti-LGBT Homicides in the United States Unique?

Abstract

An integral issue to the study of bias crimes is how violence targeting lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) victims is different from other more common forms of violent crimes. Limitations in official bias crimes data have inhibited our understanding of the relative nature of anti-LGBT crimes. The purpose of this study is to examine the similarities and differences in anti-LGBT homicides and average homicides in the United States between 1990 and 2008. The current study addresses methodological issues by relying on an open-source database of anti-LGBT homicides. This study found that the nature of these homicides is both similar and significantly different from the average homicide. Implications for the ongoing bias crimes discourse are discussed.