'It happens gay relatnships too': the story behd a domtic vlence baret | Cabaret | The Guardian

Contents:

• SIGNS OF ABE LBIAN AND GAY RELATNSHIPS
• 'IT HAPPENS GAY RELATNSHIPS TOO': THE STORY BEHD A DOMTIC VLENCE BARET

SIGNS OF ABE LBIAN AND GAY RELATNSHIPS

"There are external strsors, like discrimatn and vlence agast gays, and there are ternal strsors, such as ternalised negative attus about homosexualy.

"Sometim homosexual dividuals project their negative beliefs and feelgs about themselv on to their partner, " he says. "This experience prompted Rogers to set up his own Boston-based anisatn to provi help, tn and advocy for members of the lbian, gay, bisexual, transgenr and queer (LGBTQ) muny who are facg domtic when he first started there was a feelg the same-sex muny that speakg out about domtic abe was "airg our dirty lndry". "Across town, The Network La Red - an anisatn that began workg wh abed lbians, but now clus gay, bisexual, and transgenr muni - was experiencg the same problem.

Rogers says thgs started to improve quickly when, 2004, Massachetts beme the first state to make possible for gay men and women to marry.

'IT HAPPENS GAY RELATNSHIPS TOO': THE STORY BEHD A DOMTIC VLENCE BARET

"It had a ripplg effect through multiple different stutns - crimal jtice, the urts, police and healthre, " he the 1990s, police would often fail to take domtic abe a gay male relatnship serly.

"Boston has a large gay and lbian populatn and we don't treat people any differently.

Campaigners say awarens of the problem of vlence gay relatnships will be helped by last year's rethorisatn of the feral Vlence agast Women Act which now clus a provisn for means any fundg that through the act - even stat that do not regnise civil partnerships or gay marriage - now has to go to everyone, regardls of their sexual orientatn or genr inty. "So far 's liberal stat like Massachetts that have done most to support gay victims of domtic vlence, but the signs are that the ti may be slowly begng to change across the untry.