Young gay men experience high rates of anti-gay violence and harassment


A UCSF study of gay and bisexual young men in Phoenix, Austin, and Albuquerque found that during a six-month period, over a third reported experiencing anti-gay harassment, 5 percent reported anti-gay violence and 11 percent reported anti-gay discrimination.

"Our study is one of the first to use a large multi-ethnic sample to document experiences of anti-gay mistreatment over a specific time frame. One of the most alarming aspects of our findings is that those who experience violence and harassment reported lower self esteem and were twice as likely to report having thought seriously about suicide," said the study's lead author, David M. Huebner, PhD, MPH, psychologist at UCSF's Center for AIDS Prevention Studies (CAPS).

The study, published in the July 1, 2004 issue of the American Journal of Public Health, examined the six-month cumulative incidence of anti-gay violence, harassment and discrimination among 1,248 gay and bisexual men aged 18 to 27 from the three southwestern cities. Sixty percent were white, 30 percent Latino, and 18 percent were aged 21 or younger.