Problems and Prospects with Policing the Lesbian, Gay and Bisexual Community in Wales

Abstract

Using data from a survey of 354 lesbian, gay and bisexual (LGB) people living in Wales, we tested two models that included demographic characteristics (sex, age, children, disability, income, employment status), Wales‐related variables (Welsh as first language, geographic region) and LGB‐related variables (currently in same‐sex relationship, participates in LGB events, visibility of sexual orientation, physical victimization as a result of sexual orientation) as potential influences on respondents' perceptions of discrimination. Our dependent variables included two types of discrimination: feeling unprotected by the law and feeling discriminated against or harassed by the police. It was identified that those individuals who had been victimized tended to have negative experiences of the police. This was particularly the case for male rather than female victims. A similar pattern emerged for feeling unprotected by the law. Demographic characteristics, such as sex, disability and employment status also had a significant impact upon feeling unprotected by the law and feeling harassed or discriminated against by the police. The diverse policing policies and practices relating to the LGB community across the four police forces in Wales have created an uneven distribution of both positive and negative experiences.

Keywords:

• Policing Minority Communities
• Sexuality
• Discrimination
• Hate Crime
• Lesbian, Gay and Bisexual Community in Wales
• Public Perceptions of the Police

Notes

Matthew Williams and Amanda Robinson are both in the School of Social Sciences at Cardiff University. Correspondence to: Matthew L. Williams, School of Social Sciences, Cardiff University, Glamorgan Building, King Edward VII Avenue, Cardiff CF10 3WT, UK. Email: [email protected].

The tripartite structure included the Home Secretary, the police authority and the chief constable (it was removed by the Police and Magistrates' Courts Act 1994). Accountability for certain responsibilities were confusing under such a structure. Also there were concerns over incompatibility of the structure with community policing initiatives.

Section 82 of the Act is designed to give statutory expression to the decision by the then Lord Chief Justice in the case of R v. Ribbans, Duggan and Ridley (1995) 16 Cr App R(S) 698. That case makes clear that where there is evidence of a racist element in the commission of a crime then the sentencer should consider this as an aggravating factor meriting an increased sentence.

Recent policy changes have resulted in the exclusion of non‐police personnel at these meetings.

One respondent described their sexual identity as Transgendered (male to female) and another reported being Transgendered (female to male). The survey did not make it explicit whether these respondents would describe their sexual identity as homosexual, bisexual or heterosexual. Because they were responding to a “Survey of Wales' Lesbian, Gay and Bisexual Community”, we must assume they are gay. Three heterosexual people completed the survey, but were excluded from the analyses because most questions on the survey were designed to elicit the perceptions of non‐heterosexual people. Reflecting the sexual identity of the majority of respondents, and for ease of presentation, we use the acronym “LGB” throughout this article.

The use of regression analysis for statistical inferences is based on assumptions such as: random sampling, the absence of sampling errors and continuous interval data. “Because criminal justice research seldom completely satisfies these assumptions, you should use caution in assessing the results of regression analyses” (Maxfield & Babbie, 1998: 375). Unfortunately, the purposive sampling strategy adopted for this research by Stonewall Cymru (out of necessity) means that these results should be interpreted with caution, and are probably not generalizable to the population of LGB people (in Wales or elsewhere). However they do provide a useful starting point for future replication studies.

As one reviewer rightly pointed out, this conflates non‐response with non‐experience. Amendments to Stonewall Cymru's attitudinal survey already have been suggested.

Census categories were used to constitute the three geographic regions. South Wales includes regions CF and NP, Mid‐West Wales includes regions SA, LD and SY, and North Wales includes LL and CH. “Other” respondents living outside of Wales were categorized as “missing”.

These included siblings, parents, grandparents, children, neighbours, work colleagues, employer, teachers, GP, landlord, bank, benefits agency, religious leader.

The level that respondents were “out” was assigned a numerical value (4=all, 3=most, 2=some, 1=none, 0=missing or not applicable), and these values were summed for the 13 types of people. The scale therefore ranges from 0 to 52. A maximum score of 52 would be interpreted to mean that the respondent was fully “out” to all the people listed on the survey.

GYL Project provides a support and befriending service for young LGB people and their families.

It is not ideal to have both of these types of victimization included in one measure. It is probable that a substantial proportion of this type of victimization relates to school bullying as 44 per cent of respondents less than 25 years old are currently students, and most young people will have recently been students. Additionally, other research has identified that a large amount of the physical abuse of young LGB people is experienced within educational settings (GALOP, 1998; Mason & Palmer, 1996; Rivers, 2000; Renold, 2002). Future research into this area should attempt to gather data on specific forms of physical victimization, their frequency and characteristics, and where they are most likely to occur.

The introduction of the European framework directive for equal treatment in employment and occupation under Article 13 of the Treaty of Amsterdam in December 2003 will afford LGB employees with employment rights.