Community | July 10, 2010 | 5 comments

'I Was Scared to Sleep': LGBT Youth Face Violence Behind Bars | The Nation

source: http://www.thenation.com/article/36488/i-was-scared-sleep-lgbt-youth-face-violence-behind-bars

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Over the phone, Krystal has a calm and lilting Southern accent. She identifies as a woman now, but when she entered Louisiana's juvenile justice system at 12 years of age, she presented herself as a boy and used male pronouns. Today, she's 18 and was just recently released from the system. Being closeted about her gender identity was never an option for her. "It's very obvious with me because of how I walk, talk, the way I do things," she says. And while her sentencing judge had told her that she wouldn't be in prison for long, it was five years before a sympathetic counselor made a formal request for her release. In her letter to the judge, the counselor mentioned in passing that Krystal had confided in her that she was probably transgender, and that she was in a romantic relationship with another boy at the facility. On the voicemail he left in response to the counselor's report, the judge openly laughed and called the recommendation a joke. He said that based on those facts, he would absolutely deny the request for a release hearing. "Many judges in rural Louisiana still conflate sex offenses with sexual orientation and gender identity," says Wesley Ware of the Juvenile Justice Project of Louisiana. It was months before Krystal was finally set free.
  1. groups:
    Community,   Gay,   Human Rights,   LGBT,   1 more
  2. tags:
    LGBT,  Violence,  Youth,  Homeless,  2 more
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5 comments // 'I Was Scared to Sleep': LGBT Youth Face Violence Behind Bars | The Nation

  • Mattchicago
    • 0
      Mattchicago  

    • i think its very sad and disturbing at the same time that youth are not watched or monitored in all aspects even in jail to make sure there personal space and freedom is not in danger. Even me being gay i think there should be a sense of space and respect no matter what the demographics of the person is (straight, gay or bisexual). I feel also that is where people become against gays or lesbians after they get out of prison into general population since they were abused by other inmates or prison guards.

      I feel the whole prison system and youth detention centers need a wake up call and also as well A more safe environment for everyone no matter what charges they have against them or what they have done. I have heard about this as well in halfway homes and other places that have ex-cons, or youth that is homeless they are also abused by people in charge of them and well no one will belief the youth since they are homeless or ex-cons or other things.

      Such a pathetic world sometimes.

    • 1 year ago
  • timetide
  • ezrierin
    • 0
      ezrierin  

    • I have a close relative that was locked up in a juvenile facility. He is straight. We will call him T. His mom is bisexual. Being the entrepreneur
      type, T quickly ran the entire block! Good for T, and the LGBT when he was there. Why? Because T quietly protected them, when he could. T also found that the staff ignored his ENFORCEMENT of HIS block, because T kept the peace even if tobacco and drugs were T’s 24-7 business. CRAZY!!! Here is the question, WHY DO WE HAVE PRISONS JAILS AND JUVINILLE FACILITIES THAT ALLOW ANY OF THIS CRAP??? Why do the guards rely on the prisoners to run things? Are we so stupid we cannot make a system where there are no blind spots, everyone is under 24-7 watch and the ability to do violence to each other is 10,000 to one? I think many Americans like the violence and rapes because it is the red neck way of punishing them there faggots and convicts. SICK BASTERDS!
      Everyone has some prejudice in them. Therefore, everyone who works at a juvenile prison facility should have to go through vigorous psychological evaluation to determine his or her extent of homophobia. To high and your out. Affirmative action promoting LGBT staff should be mandatory. The average IQ of a person is 100. No average person has the brains to really handle the complexities here. They have to have at least 115 before being considered for employment. Hey, idiots do not go into space either. We screen them. These are our kids, they are entitled to protection, even FROM T, a good-hearted tyrant!!! These are adult people, and they too are entitled to protection, even if they are locked up for the rest of their lives. I am not saying TV and breakfast in bed. However, I demand simple human dignity for all.
      PS: T is doing really good now. He wants to run his own business. He learned he could manipulate and influence people on HIS block! Jeez already! I will try to be sure he is not a tyrant there too, even a good-hearted tyrant. Giggles!

    • 1 year ago
  • trut
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