Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer experiences of homelessness and identity: insecurity and home(o)normativity

Abstract

Homelessness among the young lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans à (LGBTþ) population is becoming an increasing societal concern, with alarmist reporting of high rates of homelessness compared to heterosexual people. This paper presents qualitative evidence from research with 20 LGBT þ people who had experienced homelessness in Scotland. Significantly, it moves discussion of LGBT þ homelessness out of a concern with public health and social work, to understand it in terms of homelessness research and housing theory. The analysis also brings in queer theory to our discussions of homelessness and housing. As a result, rather than understanding our participants as passive victims of a homophobic or transphobic society, we focus on their agency in developing a queer identity alongside their experiences of insecure accommodation. In their experiences of homelessness people were carrying out 'edgework' at the margins of heteronormative society. Routes out of homelessness were thus associated with people becoming more comfortable within their identities. We conclude by arguing that experiences of homelessness interacted in complex ways with sexual and gender identity, and that tailored mainstream housing provision is required for LGBT þ homeless people.

Gender Variant Children and Institutional Arrangements: Exploring the Phenomenon from South Asian Perspective

“…5. Western countries such as the UK, Germany and Canada have taken extensive policy initiatives in the education sector for transgender inclusivity which are well documented in literature (Hudson-Sharp, 2018; Martino et al, 2018; Peter Matthews, 2019, and the pioneer work by Kristina Olson [2015, 2018] on gender development and cognition in GVC).…”

Family relationships and LGB first homelessness in Australia: What do we know and where should we go?

“…It is possible that bisexual young people (whether cisgender or transgender) display more gender non-conformity as young children. An increasing body of literature suggests that some young people with minority sexual identities can display gender non-conformity in childhood, which makes them a target of maltreatment and trauma in the home (Bos et al, 2019; Matthews et al, 2018; Oakley and Bletsas, 2017; Rosario et al, 2012). Sexually abusive or otherwise violent parents or caregivers of the respondents in this study may have been motivated by a desire to discipline gender non-compliant children into more heteronormative behaviours from the time they were very young.…”

“…In the UK, a report produced by the Albert Kennedy Trust found parental rejection, abuse within the family and other kinds of familial aggression were the top three self-reported reasons for homelessness among the LGBT young people interviewed for the study (Bateman, 2015). Abuse related to gender non-conformity in childhood is one possible explanation for this (Matthews et al, 2018; Oakley and Bletsas, 2017; Rosario et al, 2012).…”

“…However, housing scholars in the UK and US have recently called for a more nuanced look at how family relationships or experiences intersect with LGBTQ+ homelessness. This is in the interests of doing justice to factors in homelessness such as poverty, ethnicity, race and other forms of social stratification, and with regard to the complexity of the identity and belonging issues at stake (Matthews et al, 2018; Robinson, 2018; Wheeler et al, 2017).…”

Achieving Equality in Progressive Contexts: Queer(Y)Ing Public Administration

“…There is evidence that LGBT+ people are more likely to experience homelessness and are thus more likely to access homelessness services (Bateman, 2015;Ecker, 2016;Prendergast, Dunne, & Telford, 2001), although in the UK and Scotland it is difficult to get accurate data as this is not recorded in administrative processes (Peter Matthews, Poyner, & Kjellgren, 2019). Under the Homelessness (Scotland) Act 2003 nearly everyone in Scotland who has been made unintentionally homeless has a statutory right to housing from their local housing authoritytheir local council (Watts, 2014).…”