ABSTRACT
Violence, in its various forms, has been a central concern of sexual and gender identity-based movements. This chapter tracks and interrogates the emergence of a ‘crime paradigm’ in LGBT advocacy and law reform efforts seeking to challenge homophobic and transphobic violence, frequently through their interpretation as ‘hate crime’. Reflecting larger transnational trends in sexual and gender politics, LGBT anti-violence campaigns in Victoria have utilised criminal–legal theories, methodologies, and approaches in attempts to explain and remedy ‘homophobic hate’. The chapter draws out three interconnected themes to illustrate the permeation of criminal–legal logics within LGBT advocacy: the victimisation survey method, the focus on police reform, and elements of a punitive public discourse surrounding homophobic hate crime. It argues that staking sexual citizenship claims upon victimisation within a criminal–legal framework may deepen existing lines inclusion/exclusion by bolstering carceral logics and systems. LGBT people continue to be confronted with the failures of police and legal protection, especially for the most marginalised members of queer communities.
