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Making Sense of the Senseless: The Experience of Being Gay Bashed By Dale Chad Allen Smith A Thesis Submitted to the Faculty of Graduate Studies In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Social Work Faculty of Social Work University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, Manitoba © December, 2008 Library and Bibliotheque et 1*1 Archives Canada Archives Canada Published Heritage Direction du Branch Patrimoine de I'edition 395 Wellington Street 395, rue Wellington Ottawa ON K1A0N4 Ottawa ON K1A0N4 Canada Canada Your file Votre reference ISBN: 978-0-494-50631-8 Our file Notre reference ISBN: 978-0-494-50631-8 NOTICE: AVIS: The author has granted a non­ L'auteur a accorde une licence non exclusive exclusive license allowing Library permettant a la Bibliotheque et Archives and Archives Canada to reproduce, Canada de reproduire, publier, archiver, publish, archive, preserve, conserve, sauvegarder, conserver, transmettre au public communicate to the public by par telecommunication ou par Plntemet, prefer, telecommunication or on the Internet, distribuer et vendre des theses partout dans loan, distribute and sell theses le monde, a des fins commerciales ou autres, worldwide, for commercial or non­ sur support microforme, papier, electronique commercial purposes, in microform, et/ou autres formats. paper, electronic and/or any other formats. The author retains copyright L'auteur conserve la propriete du droit d'auteur ownership and moral rights in et des droits moraux qui protege cette these. this thesis. Neither the thesis Ni la these ni des extraits substantiels de nor substantial extracts from it celle-ci ne doivent etre imprimes ou autrement may be printed or otherwise reproduits sans son autorisation. reproduced without the author's permission. In compliance with the Canadian Conformement a la loi canadienne Privacy Act some supporting sur la protection de la vie privee, forms may have been removed quelques formulaires secondaires from this thesis. ont ete enleves de cette these. While these forms may be included Bien que ces formulaires in the document page count, aient inclus dans la pagination, their removal does not represent il n'y aura aucun contenu manquant. any loss of content from the thesis. Canada THE UNIVERSITY OF MANITOBA FACULTY OF GRADUATE STUDIES •k-k-k-k-k COPYRIGHT PERMISSION Making Sense of the Senseless: The Experience of Being Gay Bashed BY Dale Chad Allen Smith A Thesis/Practicum submitted to the Faculty of Graduate Studies of The University of Manitoba in partial fulfillment of the requirement of the degree Of Masters of Social Work Dale Chad Allen Smith © 2008 Permission has been granted to the University of Manitoba Libraries to lend a copy of this thesis/practicum, to Library and Archives Canada (LAC) to lend a copy of this thesis/practicum, and to LAC's agent (UMI/ProQuest) to microfilm, sell copies and to publish an abstract of this thesis/practicum. This reproduction or copy of this thesis has been made available by authority of the copyright owner solely for the purpose of private study and research, and may only be reproduced and copied as permitted by copyright laws or with express written authorization from the copyright owner. ABSTRACT Violence against gay men occurs every day. Stories can be found in newspapers, magazines, and on the World Wide Web reporting these incidences, yet there has been little research done from a qualitative perspective that explores the impact of violence on the lives of gay men. How do gay men make sense of the experience and the affects that violence perpetuated against them has on their lives? This research project examines the experiences of gay men that have been victims of various levels of violence directed at them as a result of their sexual orientation and identity as gay men. Using a qualitative approach, six gay men were interviewed and shared their experiences through personal interviews. The data collected within the interviews was then analyzed using Grounded Theory as the methodology. As there has been little research done on the impact that gay bashing has on gay men's lives, the main objective of the research was to explore the experience of gay bashing with gay men that have been victims of such violence and gain a better understanding of the issues related to this experience. This research will add to the knowledge base around the experiences of sexual minority men and provide information for social workers, medical practitioners, law enforcement agencies, teachers and other service providers that will encounter gay men that are victims of violence. It provides valuable information that can be used to shape policy and practice to better assist gay men that are victims of violence. It also provides a voice to the many men whose stories are never heard and whose experiences are often discounted. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS There are several people that need to be acknowledged for their contributions and support in making the completion of this thesis come to completion. Firstly, I would like to acknowledge and thank the men who participated in this research and opened themselves up so honestly and bravely to share their experiences. Their voices, their stories, their reflections and their willingness to share all of these made this research possible. Thank you. My thesis advising committee was an important part of this process. Each member of my committee was chosen specifically by myself for the talent, wisdom and insights that they could bring to this process. I would like to thank each and every one of them. Mr. Jaik Josephson brought his knowledge and experiences as a social worker and clinical practitioner to my committee. I was honoured when he agreed to be a part of this process and intimidated yet challenged in the hope of living up to his expectations. Thank you for all you've done for the gay community and for myself in this process. Professor Eveline Milliken has always been a welcoming and supportive presence in the Faculty of Social Work. Her expertise and knowledge in Grounded Theory and her understanding and openness to the experiences of sexual minority individuals made her a perfect choice for the committee. Thank you for your insight, suggestions and support. Professor Lisa Seymour has always been an inspiration to me. It was because of Lisa that I became a social worker and I can only hope to be involved in as much positive change in the world that Lisa has been directly responsible for. Thank you for your support and your friendship. Professor Kim Clare was my advisor throughout this process. She was always present, to assist with direction, to answer questions, to ask questions and to give guidance. At difficult times she showed kindness and understanding that helped me to continue in this important work. I can not thank her enough for agreeing to be my advisor. Thank you! Also critical to this process was my external committee of members from the LGBTT community. Ms. Shelly Smith, the Executive Director at the Rainbow Resource Centre, Ms. Lisa Passante, social worker and former President of the Rainbow Resource Centre, and Mr. Jeremy Buchner, social worker and former Services Coordinator at the Rainbow Resource Centre were an invaluable resource as my external committee. They provided validation and confirmation on the research process as an external member checking committee. Thank you for all the hard work and contributions that all three of you have made to the GLBTT community, the Rainbow Resource Centre, and to this research. All three of you are truly inspirations. Another source of motivation to me is the family that I go home to every day—my three cats Lane, Sketch and Gambit. Their curiousness at the millions of papers strewn on the floor would often overcome them and they'd dash through them all, scattering what little system of organization that had existed into chaos. Their never ending affection, nudges and cuddles got me through some long moments at the computer. Thanks guys! Finally I would like to thank two men that were supportive in my life throughout this process. My former partner, Paul Jones, was supportive at a time when nightmares of my own gay bashing haunted me. I have never forgotten that. Thank you. My partner, Erwin Maguire, was patient, supportive, understanding and present throughout the entire experience of completing and writing this research. His presence means so much to me and has made my life complete. Thank you. TABLE OF CONTENTS Chapter One: Introduction Page 1 Research Interest Page 3 Research Study Page 5 Chapter Two: Rationale and Research Context Page 10 Language Page 10 Theoretical Framework Page 13 Literature Review Page 21 Chapter Three: Methodology Page 40 Methodological Framework Page 40 Grounded Theory Page 40 Anti-Oppressive Practice Approach Page 45 Chapter Four: Methods & Procedures Page 51 Data Analysis Page 51 Participant Recruitment Page 54 Interview Process Page 61 Validity Page 67 Chapter Five: Ethics Page 70 Ethical Considerations Page 70 Proposal Process Page 77 Sensitivity Page 78 Research In Action Page 79 Chapter Six: Participants Page 81 Biography: Kevin Page 82 Biography: Rick Page 85 Biography: Dan Page 88 Biography: Todd Page 91 Biography: Jeff Page 96 Biography: Matt Page 99 Chapter Seven: Data Analysis Page 103 Themes Page 104 Personal Experiences of Homophobia Page 105 Fighting Back Page 112 Heteronormativity Page 117 Identity & Identity Change Page 128 Reaching Out—Disclosure & Support Page 142 Isolation Page 152 Power, Powerlessness, & Privilege Page

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