The Danger of Male Homosexuality vs Female Homosexuality

[Una_Persson]

A few facts for the Straight Dope.

2008 Hate Crime Statistics.

Sexual-orientation bias

Offenders targeted 1,706 victims due to a sexual-orientation bias, and of these:

57.5 percent were victims of an offender’s anti-male homosexual bias.
27.3 percent were victims because of an anti-homosexual bias.
11.6 percent were victims because of an anti-female homosexual bias.
2.0 percent were victims because of an anti-heterosexual bias.
1.6 percent were victims because of an anti-bisexual bias.

Cite: in the US, lesbians are much less likely to be victims of a recorded hate crime than gay men in absolute numbers. Now in relative numbers, that’s very difficult to judge because it’s very difficult to get statistics about the number of gays and lesbians in the US. I often see a wide range of numbers. This recent study puts the numbers of lesbians and female bisexuals, and gays and male bisexuals, at about equal.

This study:

Chandra, Anjani et al. “Sexual Behavior, Sexual Attraction, and Sexual Identity in the United States: Data From the 2006–2008 National Survey of Family Growth” National Health Statistics Reports 36 (March 3, 2011).

has on Table 11 a value of 1.4% of women from age 15-44 being “mostly” or “only” attracted to the same sex. Whereas Table 12 says 1.1% identify as lesbian. Table 11 also gives a value of 1.9% of men from age 15-44 being “mostly” or “only” attracted to the same sex, whereas Table 13 gives 1.7% of men as identifying as gay.

With that in mind, we can still conclude that gay men are disproportionately subject to hate crimes due to being gay, than lesbians are due to being lesbian.

Now I suppose one can quibble with definitions and assumptions, and “unreported, secret” abuse, so if folks want to submit their own evidence to rebut, by all means do so.