Police Harassment and Violence Against Transgender and Gender Diverse Sex Workers in the United States: A Nationwide Analysis
Madeline Stenersen, PhD | September 22 | 9:45-10:45 am
Topic: Research, Law Enforcement | Knowledge Level: Beginner
Sex workers continue to experience high rates of abuse and violence around the world (Deering et al., 2014). However, information regarding police-perpetrated harassment and violence against transgender and gender diverse (TGD) sex workers in the United States remains extremely limited. The current study is the first known examination of police interaction, harassment, and violence among TGD sex workers in the United States using a large nationwide dataset. Secondary data from 23,372 TGD people were used (United States Transgender Survey). First, descriptive statistics were conducted to understand the prevalence of police interaction and 6 different types of police harassment and violence among sex workers. Next, a series of logistic regression analyses were conducted to examine the association between sociodemographic factors and the likelihood of experiencing these 6 different types of police harassment and violence. Results revealed that sex workers were more likely to experience police interaction, harassment, and violence compared to non-sex workers. Among sex workers with police interaction while doing sex work, 89.2% reported experiencing at least one type of harassment and/or violence. Regression analyses revealed that individuals with no reported income and trans women were more likely to experience multiple types of police harassment/violence. The presentation will specify comparison groups and additional implications. Taken together, TGD sex workers continue to experience alarming rates of interaction, harassment, and violence from police in the United States. Urgent and effective intervention is needed to eliminate police harassment and violence toward TGD sex workers and provide support for TGD sex workers who survive this violence.
Presentation Objectives:
· Provide an overview of the knowledge base on police violence against transgender and gender diverse people involved in the sex trade in the United States
· Review the study including questions, methodology, and findings
· Describe the implications for the study and next steps in research and practice