LGBT in The United States - Violence Against LGBT People - Hate Crimes and Anti-bullying Activism

Hate Crimes and Anti-bullying Activism

Even after the legalization of same-sex relations in states of the United States, LGBT persons have continued to be targeted by attacks - both violent and non-violent - against themselves by individuals who claim any degree of emotional or religious motivation for their crimes. This phenomenon has been variously attributed to the influence of institutional and authoritarian homophobia in various environments, and the prevention of violent or criminal coercion on the basis of sexual orientation, gender identity has become increasingly associated with general anti-bullying and anti-hate crime movements.

The torture and murder of University of Wyoming student Matthew Shepard in 1998 became a rallying moment for activism against hate crimes, and the landmark Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act was passed in 2009 under President Barack Obama; the Act was also the first federal legislation of any purpose to specifically refer to transgender persons.

In 2009-2010, a number of suicides by teenage and young adult Americans in relation to sexual orientation- or gender expression-related bullying by fellow students garnered headlines, bringing to the fore a debate on bullying in schools and other environments. In response, Seattle-area opinion columnist and rights activist Dan Savage participated with his husband in the making of a video which encouraged children and teenagers to resist and overcome peer bullying, inaugurating an ongoing series of videos by politicians, media personalities, business leaders, activists and others both within and outside the United States listed under the "It Gets Better Project".