365Gay.com reports that a new study claims that one in five urban gay men is battered by his partner. A study by Georgetown University’s School of Nursing and Health Studies shows that gay men are just as likely as heterosexual women to be victims of domestic violence.
‘While decades of research has yielded valuable information about violence among heterosexual partners, until now very little has been known about violence among same-sex partners,’ said Michael Relf, assistant professor at Georgetown University’s School of Nursing and Health Studies and a lead author of the report. ‘This study shatters the myth that men are able to protect themselves from violence perpetuated by other men. We now know that domestic violence is an equal opportunity epidemic.’
The study also showed that HIV-positive men, as well as men 40 years or younger, were more likely to be abused.
Some have disputed the reports’ high numbers.
In Chicago, Horizons tracks cases of hate-crimes and domestic violence.