Queer Criminology Midterm

Scholars in this field critique traditional criminology for ignoring LGBTQ+ experiences and focus on how stigma and marginalization shape offending and victimization

Queer Criminology

This theory argues that people may engage in crime when they experience stress or strain, especially if they lack socially approved ways to cope

General Strain Theory

Often used alongside queer theory, this concept emphasizes how overlapping social identities like race, class, and sexual orientation compound experiences of oppression in the criminal justice system.

Intersectionality

This theoretical framework challenges fixed categories of gender and sexuality and emphasizes the fluidity of identities.

Queer Theory

A key method in queer theory, this approach examines and breaks down established ideas or norms to expose hidden assumptions and power dynamics.

Deconstruction

This term describes a person’s enduring emotional, romantic, or sexual attraction to others

Sexual Orientation

This term refers to a person’s internal sense of being a man, a woman, a blend of both, or neither

Gender Identity

This identity is used by some Indigenous North Americans to describe people who embody both masculine and feminine spirits

Two-Spirit

Studies consistently show that surveys and population estimates of this group are likely lower than reality due to stigma, privacy concerns, and the nuances of identity

The LGBTQ+ population

This term can refer both to an individual identity and an umbrella category for sexual and gender identities outside of heterosexual and cisgender norms

Queer

Historically, which behaviors were criminalized under 'sodomy laws'?

Consensual same-sex behaviors

LGBTQ+ people experience which three types of victimization?

Interpersonal, Institutional, Structural

What does institutional victimization look like in practice?

When organizations or systems (like police, hospitals, or schools) discriminate against or neglect LGBTQ+ people — for example, refusing care or protection.

Why might LGBTQ+ people underreport experiences of victimization?

Due to fear of discrimination, secondary victimization, or lack of trust in law enforcement and support services.

How do macro-level attacks, such as the Pulse Orlando shooting, connect to micro-level acts of discrimination?

Everyday discrimination normalizes hostility and creates conditions that justify or enable larger-scale violence against queer communities

What are survival crimes?

Crimes committed to meet basic needs such as food, shelter, or safety — often linked to social and economic exclusion faced by LGBTQ+ people

Why might LGBTQ+ people be overrepresented in the criminal legal system?

Due to factors like discrimination, poverty, homelessness, survival crimes, and biased policing practices that criminalize queer existence.

According to Asquith et al. (2017), what is one key trigger for “queer criminal careers”?

Social exclusion and marginalization that limit access to legitimate opportunities, pushing some toward criminalized behaviors.

How do structural inequalities shape patterns of offending among queer and trans people?

Systemic barriers such as employment discrimination, family rejection, and criminalization of identity increase vulnerability to survival-based offending.

Why is knowledge about LGBTQ+ offending limited in criminological research?

Because most data sources don’t collect information on sexual orientation or gender identity, leading to underrepresentation and invisibility in official statistics.

What does the term victim-offender overlap refer to?

The idea that the same individuals can experience both victimization and offending, often due to shared social and structural conditions.

What are common forms of victimization experienced by LGBTQ+ people discussed in Buist & Lenning (2023)?

1.Hate crimes

2.Murder

3.Intimate partner violence (IPV)

4.State negligence

Why might the victim-offender overlap be especially relevant when studying queer populations?

Because structural marginalization, social exclusion, and survival needs often lead to both increased risk of victimization and engagement in criminalized behavior.

How does intersectionality deepen our understanding of victimization among queer people of color?

Intersectionality shows that victimization among queer people of color cannot be explained solely by homophobia or transphobia—it is compounded by racism, classism, and other systems of oppression. These overlapping forces shape who is seen as a “legitimate” victim, influence responses from law enforcement and social services, and often result in underreporting or misclassification of harm

Why might traditional criminological theories fail to account for queer experiences of crime and victimization?

They are often based on heteronormative and cisnormative assumptions that overlook how structural inequalities, stigma, and identity-based discrimination shape queer people’s interactions with crime and justice.

Who wrote Queer Criminology, one of the foundational texts establishing the field as a subdiscipline within criminology?

Buist & Lenning

Who developed the concept of queer turning points in life-course criminology, exploring how coming out, family reaction, and chosen family can shape LGBTQ+ people’s trajectories in and out of the criminal legal system?

Skylar Morgan

Who argued that “intersectionality” captures how systems of power—such as race, gender, and class—interlock to shape experiences of oppression and privilege?

Kimberle Crenshaw

Which scholars wrote about the common pathways of trans people into the criminal legal system, including factors leading to arrest or involvement for trans men and trans women?

Rogers & Rogers for Trans men, Hereth for trans women

Which scholar wrote about the complexities of the term queer and key concepts in queer theory, including the idea of deconstruction in criminological research?

Mathew Ball