Hate Crimes Based On Sexual Orientation Skyrocket In D.C. Amid National Trend Of Increasing Rates

The Washington Post: D.C. Hate Crimes Nearly Double Since 2016, With LGBTQ Community The Biggest Target
The number of hate crimes in the District rose sharply in 2018, nearly doubling the total attributed to bias in the city just two years earlier, according to city statistics. Crimes based on sexual orientation topped the list, according to the Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism, a research center at California State University at San Bernardino. The center analyzed the rise in hate crimes in the District and in cities across the nation in its annual report on bias crimes. (Zauzmer and McCoy, 2/2)

The Washington Post: Transgender Teens Experience Higher Levels Of Violence And Health And Safety Issues
Transgender teens — those whose gender identity does not align with their biological sex at birth — now represent almost 2 percent of U.S. high school students, according to a new report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. That conclusion stems from the agency’s analysis of data based on a nationally representative sample of 131,901 public school students in grades nine through 12, who were asked a variety of questions about gender identity and personal health and safety issues. (Searing, 2/3)

And in Florida —

The Washington Post: Judge Says Tampa Conversion Therapy Ban Violates First Amendment Free-Speech Rights
A federal magistrate judge this week recommended that a ban on conversion therapy in Tampa be partially blocked, arguing it violates therapists’ free-speech rights under the First Amendment. A pair of licensed marriage and family therapists, along with a Christian ministry organization, sued the city of Tampa over an ordinance adopted in April 2017 that barred mental health professionals from subjecting minors to conversion therapy, a highly controversial practice that attempts to change a person’s sexual orientation or gender identity. (Schmidt, 2/1)