Understanding Anti-Trans Sanctuary Harm in Domestic Violence Services: The Role of Polyvictimization and Biographical Factors

Transgender (trans) people comprise about 2 million members of the U.S. population. While these communities are blueprints for culture and liberation, they face an acute threat of interpersonal violence, including domestic violence (DV) by intimate partners and family. Trans people are especially susceptible to <i>polyvictimization</i>: experiencing multiple types of violence, often across multiple settings. Furthermore, the negative impacts of violence are often compounded by institutional discrimination when seeking help, or <i>sanctuary harm</i>. For trans survivors of DV, it is crucial that researchers understand group differences in sanctuary harm during help-seeking-differences not only by identity and other biographical traits but also by sanctuary harm experiences in other institutional settings (e.g., healthcare, legal services). To explore associations between these factors, the current study presents a secondary analysis of data from the 2011 National Transgender Discrimination Survey, a large sample of trans and gender nonconforming adults living in the United States, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and Guam. Two binary logistic regressions model the relationship between several biographical and sanctuary harm predictors, and the study outcome of anti-trans sanctuary harm in DV services. Results indicate that sanctuary harm in four other settings-ambulance/emergency medical technician, mental health clinic, drug treatment program, and legal services-significantly predicts the same type of victimization in a DV services context. Some biographical factors were also significant: being more visibly nonconforming, being marginally housed, and ever engaging in sex work were all associated with higher odds of the dependent variable. Study limitations, suggestions for future research, and implications for comprehensive and intersectional DV services are discussed.