LGBTQIA+phobic Violence: Overview of the situation in the Brussels Region

On the occasion of the International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia, safe.brussels presents exclusive new data on LGBTQIA+phobic violence in the Brussels Region. Collected through the non-profit organization RainbowHouse Brussels, in partnership with equal.brussels and safe.brussels, these data shed light on LGBTQIA+phobic acts committed in the Brussels Region that are otherwise rarely reported to the authorities.
 

Of the 217 reports of violence collected since late 2019, a police complaint was filed in just over 1 out of 10 cases. There is a significant distrust towards the police among LGBTQIA+ individuals who reported incidents to the RainbowHouse. Restoring trust in institutions is therefore a major challenge, and this project contributes to that goal.

Men are responsible for 8 out of 10 reported acts of violence.

This highlights the roots of homophobic and transphobic violence in a patriarchal and heteronormative system, where individuals who stray from gender binary norms or stereotyped gender-based appearance (makeup, clothing, shoes), or who visibly express their sexual orientation, are still exposed to violence. Reports of same-sex couples being attacked for holding hands in public are still too common.

Awareness-raising work is needed in this regard.

Such work must be carried out on multiple fronts: the collected reports show that LGBTQIA+ individuals can be in danger in all the places they frequent. Assaults occur in public spaces (48%), private residences (19%), work or school environments (12%), as well as in medical and public institutions.

More information can be found in Flash Paper Nr. 6 of the Observatory (available now) or in a more detailed analysis (coming soon).
 

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