UNITED STATES: Law to address abuse and discrimination for LGBT youth

[7 January 2007] - A new law has come into effect in California, USA, which protects lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, as well as straight, youth from discrimination in state Department of Juvenile Justice facilities. The bill includes institution of a Youth Bill of Rights, statutory anti-bias rules, and a toll-free help hotline that youth can call to report rights violations

Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) youth are disproportionately represented among youth who are at risk for contact with the juvenile justice system due to family rejection, school harassment and violence, and social isolation they often face after coming out. They are also highly vulnerable to discrimination and abuse once they enter this system because of the lack of understanding about sexual orientation and gender identity issues by court and juvenile justice officials. Current California fell short of providing the basic protections that LGBT, and all youth, deserve in this setting to adequately safeguard their civil rights, safety and dignity.

Risk factors that increase the likelihood of juvenile justice contact for LGBT youth include:
• Homelessness and runaway status, after youth are kicked out or flee domestic abuse by family members unable to accept the youth’s gender identity or sexual orientation
• Involvement in survival crimes such as theft and prostitution
• Violence and harassment in school, causing LGBT youth to skip classes, perform worse and lower their aspirations
• Social isolation from the wider community, including some civic institutions and extended family networks
• High rates of depression, chronic stress and substance abuse due to family and societal rejection

LGBT youth are also highly vulnerable once they enter the juvenile justice system because of inadequate policies, protections, and support services. A few of the documented threats that LGBT youth face are:
• Court and juvenile justice officials’ lack of understanding about sexual orientation and gender identity issues
• Verbal, physical and sexual abuse by staff and fellow residents in Department of Juvenile Justice and county juvenile facilities
• Unnecessary use of isolation and segregation in confinement
• Inappropriate placement or labeling as “sex-offenders”

The new law, which came into effect on 1 January, will:

• Create a Youth Bill of Rights, which would enumerate 15 basic rights for incarcerated and detained youth, including the right to live in a safe, healthy and comfortable environment where he or she is treated with respect, and the right to be protected from physical, sexual and emotional abuse
• Require that copies of the Youth Bill of Rights be made easily accessible to youth and displayed in prominent locations in facilities
• Create statutory protections from harassment and discrimination based on actual or perceived race, ethnic group identification, ancestry, national origin, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, mental or physical disability, and HIV status
• Require the state Division of Juvenile Justice and local juvenile facilities to adopt policies prohibiting harassment and discrimination in conformance with new statutory nondiscrimination provisions
• Require the Office of the Ombudsperson of the Division of Juvenile Justice to take various actions in connection with the rights of incarcerated youth, including disseminating information, investigating complaints, providing information regarding complaints it does not investigate, compiling and making available data to the Legislature, and providing a toll-free help hotline
• Require the Office of the Ombudsperson, in consultation with specified groups, to develop standardised, age-appropriate information explaining youth rights by July 1, 2008
• Require certain state and local juvenile justice employees to be trained on the rights of youth in custody to have fair and equal access to all available services, placement, care, treatment and benefits and to be free from harassment and discrimination

Further information

• For more information about the law, including why it is needed, visit here
• Homophobic bullying: The experiences of young gay people in Britain's schools (June 2007)
• Council of Europe: Commissioner for Human Rights on Homophobia (16 May 2007)
• Hatred in the Hallways: Violence and Discrimination Against Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Students in U.S. Schools (August 2001)