Child sexual abuse and exploitation is a global problem affecting the lives of millions of children. Even though no child is immune against potential child sexual abuse and violence, there are some groups of children that are at higher risk.
There is increasing awareness about the specific risks for abuse experienced by LGBTQ children and youth. LGBTQ youth are more exposed to harassment, violence, discrimination, sexual abuse, and exploitation, and more often suffer from mental health issues than adolescents in general. Research further indicates common breakdown of family relations in situations where the family is unable to accept the LGBTQ identity of the child or youth. This often results in the child or youth being kicked out from the home, or that the child decides or feels forced to leave.
In some countries, there are also clear legal gaps and widespread discrimination against people identifying as LGBTQ which limits access to education, employment and services. Cultural beliefs and lack of knowledge of diversity, gender and sexual orientation among family members, professionals, and people in general as well as inadequate national budget allocation for prevention and response services, contribute to this group disproportionally experiencing multiple forms of violations.
For several years, Childhood and Regnbågsfonden (the Rainbow Fund) have jointly initiated and funded initiatives to strengthen protection and reduce the risk of sexual abuse among LGBTQ youth, including boys. Our assessment is that the efforts we have made together in recent years are pioneering work that may be of interest for the wider field. The time is now ripe to analyze and document the challenges and lessons learned from these projects.
Read more and download the Terms of Reference here.
Applications and questions about the assignment can be sent to AK Fagerlund.