Almost half of gay and bisexual men have been victims of sexual assault, survey shows

Words: Jamie Tabberer; picture: Pexels (posed by model)

Over a third of gay and bisexual men have experienced sexual assault in a bar or pub, a new study has shown.

Data released by SurvivorsUK, a male rape and sexual abuse group, also reveals that 33% have experienced sexual assault in a bar or pub.

The survey of 505 gay and bisexual men also found that only 14% of respondents who experienced sexual assault reported it to the police.

Of those who did, nearly a third said they felt disbelieved or like their complaint was not taken seriously.

“As a survivor myself, I’m not surprised by these findings”

SurvivorsUK CEO Alex Feis-Bryce said: “This research highlights the extremely high levels of sexual violence experienced by gay and bi men. If we compare these findings to other recent studies focusing on men overall, gay and bisexual men are more than twice as likely to have experienced sexual violence.

“As the CEO of an organisation which supports hundreds of gay and bisexual male survivors every year and as a survivor myself, who has experienced sexual violence in queer spaces, I am sadly not surprised by these findings.

“The fact that almost half of gay and bisexual men have experienced sexual violence and more than a third felt they couldn’t tell anyone about it should be of grave concern to us as a society. There is much work to be done to raise awareness about this issue in the LGBTQ+ community and beyond as well as ensuring that the police and criminal justice system, which currently fails so many survivors, is a safe and accessible place for gay and bisexual men.

“It is absolutely crucial in opening up this challenging discussion that oxygen is not given to any of the dangerous homophobic rape myths which are prevalent in our criminal justice system and blame victims; in particular, the false assumption that gay and bi men are promiscuous so therefore their consent is somehow assumed or has less value.

“Modern sex lives are complex and nuanced, and as a society we tend to view sexual violence in a way that utterly detaches it from our everyday experiences of navigating the modern world of sex and relationships. We need to challenge and raise awareness without stigmatising consensual sex in whatever form it takes.”

The survey also found that 37% of gay and bisexual men felt they could not speak to anyone after experiencing sexual assault, and a quarter reported that an intimate picture of them was shared by someone with a third party without their consent.