Abstract

This paper discusses the phenomenon of violence in the affective-sexual trajectories of young, cisgender gay men, from popular strata, in the metropolitan region of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Brazilian literature on violence against gay men generally focuses on the discrimination suffered by this population. However, the violence they are submitted to among family relationships due to their sexual orientation, or even their relationships known as “dating” or “hookup”, is hardly discussed. This qualitative study used in-depth interviews based on a semi-structured guide to discuss violence during the young gay men’s affective-sexual trajectory. The results evidenced multiple faces of violence during childhood and adolescence in family relationships, spanning their affective-sexual relationships in adolescence and youth, including sexual, physical, psychological, and institutional violence. Support networks are limited, for example, to a few friends and access to blogs on the Internet. No health professional was cited as a helping source. There is a need to discuss the prevention of violence and discuss health promotion of this social group, expanding the perspective on the various contemporary ways of relating intimately.

Key words:
Youth; Violence; Trajectories; Masculinities; Gay

Introduction

Violence in affective-sexual relationships knows no geographical barriers, social strata, age groups, religions, ethnicities, or sexual orientations, resulting from a complex combination of historical, cultural, economic, institutional, interactional, and family factors in the lives of many young Brazilian people¹1 Minayo MCS, Assis SG, Njaine K, organizadores. Amor e violência: um paradoxo das relações de namoro e do "ficar" entre jovens brasileiros. Rio de Janeiro: Editora Fiocruz; 2011.. However, marital, family, and institutional relationships marked by violence are guided by silence and secrecy, reinforcing a dichotomy between the public and the private and often pointing towards the trivialization, naturalization, and pathologization of the people involved²2 Nascimento M. Masculinidade, Juventude e Violência contra a Mulher: articulando saberes, práticas e políticas. In: Blay E, organizadora. Feminismos e Masculinidades: novos caminhos para enfrentar a violência contra a mulher. São Paulo: Cultura Acadêmica; 2014. p. 211-225.. Thus, debating violence in affective-sexual relationships, especially among the youngest, becomes a crucial task and a challenge for health.

In the last decade, we have witnessed studies on violence faced by LGBT people daily in different contexts, from public spaces to institutions such as schools and health services³3 Apostolo MVA, Moscheta MS, Souza LV. Discursos e posicionamentos em um encontro de diálogo sobre violência a LGBTs. Psicol USP 2017; 28(2):266-275.

4 Soares L. Cuidado em saúde e transfobia: percepções de travestis e transexuais de duas regiões do Rio de Janeiro: Maré e Cidade de Deus, sobre os serviços de saúde [dissertação]. Rio de Janeiro: ENSP/Fiocruz; 2018.^-55 Souza LV, Moscheta MS, Scorsolini-Comin F. Grupos de Conversações Públicas como Recurso contra a Violência à População LGBT. Paideia 2019; 29:e2905.. Other studies analyze the experiences of violence against adolescent and young gay men in the process of revealing their sexual orientation to families⁶6 Albuquerque GA, Garcia CL, Alves MJH, Queiroz CMHT, Adami F. Homossexualidade e o direito à saúde: um desafio para as políticas públicas de saúde no Brasil. Saude Debate 2013; 38(98):516-524.

7 Soliva T, Silva Jr JB. Entre revelar e esconder: pais e filhos em face da descoberta da homossexualidade. Sex Salud Soc 2014; 17:124-148.^-88 Braga IF, Oliveira WA, Silva JL, Mello FCM, Silva MAI. Violência familiar contra adolescentes e jovens gays e lésbicas: um estudo qualitativo. Rev Bras Enferm 2018; 71(Supl. 3):1220-1227.. However, various forms of violence have not been considered in the affective-sexual trajectories of young gay men, in relationships with the family, boyfriends, and “hookups”.

This paper aimed to analyze the violence in the affective-sexual trajectory of young gay cisgender men, from popular strata, in Rio de Janeiro: those that happen in family relationships, such as sexual abuse and assault upon disclosing their sexual orientation; those occurring in the “dating” and “hookup” relationships of these young gay men, including sexual, physical, and psychological violence; and institutional violence in health care. We also aimed to identify which support networks were used by them after the of suffering such violence.

We understand violence as the threat or the intentional use of force or power, encompassing acts of physical, psychological, and sexual abuse, based on social and cultural gender conceptions⁹9 Krug EG, Dahlberg LL, Mercy JA, Zwi AB, Lozano R, editores. World Report on violence and health. Geneva: WHO; 2002.. In turn, gender is understood through its performative setup and is produced in social relationships and living experimentations in articulation with body, sexuality, race, and social class, traversed by power relations. An intersectional discussion recognizes the plurality of singular and group manifestations of subjectivities, identifying which category is being focused on in specific disciplinary regimes and how it can create hierarchies and exclusions¹⁰10 Nogueira C. Interseccionalidade e psicologia feminista. Salvador: Editora Devires; 2017..

Therefore, analyzing the relationships of young gay cisgender men from an intersectional perspective implies a dual process: understanding how the asymmetric processes of the gender domination axis are structured (even in same-sex relationships), with an interpretation compiling how gender intersects, which is reformulated and articulated with other privilege and oppression relationships¹⁰10 Nogueira C. Interseccionalidade e psicologia feminista. Salvador: Editora Devires; 2017..

In this sense, some questions arise: what are the different types of violence experienced by young gay cisgender man during their affective-sexual trajectories? How can we discuss violence from an intersectional perspective, considering gender, race, and class markers? Who can young people count on to address such experiences?

Methods

This qualitative study aimed to understand the affective-sexual trajectory of 15 young gay cisgender men, from popular strata, living in the metropolitan region of Rio de Janeiro.

All research ethics requirements were complied with to ensure the subjects’ confidentiality and security. The selection criterion was to be aged between 18 and 24 years¹¹11 World Health Organization (WHO). What about boys? A literature review on the health and development of adolescent boys. Geneva: WHO; 2000.. The first author of this paper used his network of contacts to approach initial research participants, considering the challenges of researching and “observing the familiar”¹²12 Velho G. Observando o familiar. In: Velho G. Individualismo e cultura: notas para um a antropologia da sociedade contemporânea. Rio de Janeiro: Jorge Zahar; 1987.. Subsequent indications were made employing the “snowball” technique¹³13 Turato ER. Tratado da Metodologia da Pesquisa Clínico-Qualitativa. Petrópolis: Vozes; 2003.. Among the 15 young men, we listed the narratives of eight who reported situations of violence in their trajectories. The narratives were categorized based on the thematic analysis¹⁴14 Braun V, Clarke V. Using thematic analysis in psychology. Quali Res Psychol 2006; 3(2):77-101.^,1515 Braun V, Clarke V, Weate P. Using thematic analysis in sport and exercise research. In: Smith B, Sparkes AC, editores. Routledge handbook of qualitative research in sport and exercise. Londres: Routledge; 2016. p. 191-205..

Sociodemographic characterization of the respondents

According to Chart 1, the young men were aged 19-24 years. Four of the eight young men in question self-declared as “black” and most lived in favelas. All finished high school in public schools, two young people were attending higher education, and one worked in a profession that required higher education.

Analysis and discussion of results

We list the following topics for discussion: 1) Sexual violence in childhood and adolescence; 2) Intra-family violence in the process of revealing being gay; 3) Intimate partner violence; 4) Violence in the relationships with “hookups”: “stealth breeding”. Finally, the last theme, called support networks, circumscribes the type of help mentioned by young people in facing violent situations.

Sexual violence in childhood and adolescence

Three young men reported that they had suffered sexual abuse in childhood/adolescence. Sexual abuse is understood as the sexual act or game, a heterosexual or gay relationship whose perpetrator is older than the child/adolescent. These practices are imposed on the victim by physical violence, threats, or coercion¹⁶16 Cara AT, Neme CMB. Estudo documental de crianças vítimas de violência sexual: avaliação dos indicadores de comprometimento emocional segundo Koppitz. Acad Paul Psicol 2016; 36(91):383-399.. Sexual abuse is smothered by a wall of silence, which includes family members, neighbors, and, sometimes, the professionals caring for the victims¹⁷17 Braun S. A violência sexual infantil na família: Do silêncio à revelação do segredo. Porto Alegre: Age; 2002..

According to them, sexual abuse occurred between ten and 16 years. One abuse occurred for three years, and the other two on a single occasion. The perpetrators were part of the victims’ social and family circle (cousins and cousin’s friend). The young men who were abused were “passive” in the episode, and all cases did not include condom use:

Social markers also deserve to be highlighted besides the typical low age of all those who suffered abuse and the age difference between those involved. In the first narrative, VD22 reported that he was “deaf-mute” since his birth. In the account of his first sexual experience, he said the relationship was abusive and lasted three years. The relationships occurred in the family environment (with his older cousin), without the respondent’s first understanding: “I was not to blame. It took me a long time to understand what had happened!”.

From an intersectional perspective, we emphasize that the young man experiences social and sexual vulnerability. He had no one to communicate what he was living, indicating specific isolation due to his disability. Sexual episodes that occurred in childhood are understood as a mark of his “gay condition”: “I don’t know how much I discovered myself being homosexual at that time”. In other words, the sexual act seems to be essential in building a sexual identity and is an important subjective landmark. This young man believes that there is a direct relationship between the first sexual act and the (current) experience of being gay as if he had “caught homosexuality”.

In this sense, the relationship between being gay and with disability announces meaningful theoretical discussions about sexuality. Authors¹⁸18 Maia ACB, Ribeiro PRM. Desfazendo mitos para minimizar o preconceito sobre a sexualidade de pessoas com deficiências. Rev Bras Educ Espec 2010; 16(2):159-176. mention that these subjects are established from two (or more) categories of belonging socially constructed in a less valuable space.

According to his narrative, “the deaf-mute sexuality seems not to exist”, which seems to result in dual social invisibility between being gay and disabled. Disability is assumed as the main subject’s feature; thus, his sexuality cannot exist. Other discriminations, such as gender, sexual orientation, race, and social class, are added in the face of disability.

As a result, people with disabilities are vulnerable to sexual violence for two reasons: first, because they are socially invisible; and, second, due to the perpetrator’s awareness that the risk of reporting abuse is practically non-existent, as the disabled person will often be isolated and without (family and school) support¹⁹19 Ferreira WB. Vulnerabilidade à violência sexual no contexto da escola inclusiva: Reflexão sobre a invisibilidade da pessoa como deficiência. Rev Iberoam Calidad Eficacia Cambio Educ 2008; 6(2):120-136.. Therefore, in the case of the deaf-mute, it is essential to emphasize that linguistic incompatibility with the prevailing listening community and the non-acquisition of sign language favor the emergence of abusive contexts and generate complex situations of vulnerability.

Two other young people, EF23 and RT22, considered themselves “very effeminate since they were little”. The perpetrators utter a similar, typical sentence: “You are a little fag, you have to learn to become a man”; “You are a little fag, you will end up liking it (the abuse)”. Such phrases refer to the hierarchy between the “active-abuser-man” and the “passive-victim-woman”, and such abuse is called “corrective rape”²⁰20 Sánchez FL. Homossexualidade e Família: Novas Estruturas. Porto Alegre: Editora Artmed, Editora AS; 2009.

21 Contreras JM, Bott S, Guedes A, Dartnall E. Violência sexual na América Latina e no Caribe: uma análise de dados secundários. Iniciativa de Pesquisa sobre Violência Sexual; 2010.^-2222 Campos CH, Machado LZ, Nunes JK, Silva AR. Cultura do estupro ou cultura antiestupro? Rev Direito GV 2017; 13(3):981-1006. in the literature. Commonly referred to lesbians, this practice is committed under the pretext of “healing their sexual orientations and gender identities”²²22 Campos CH, Machado LZ, Nunes JK, Silva AR. Cultura do estupro ou cultura antiestupro? Rev Direito GV 2017; 13(3):981-1006..

In the case of those young men, being “effeminate” makes the abuser understand that such abuse can be justified as a “lesson” as if the abuse were to “correct” their “non-heterosexuality” and teach the young man to “be heterosexual”. The abuse runs only through the “effeminate” gender expression. In this direction, heteronormativity becomes a vital facet to see violence as a sanction and a pedagogical way of correcting a gender expression²³23 Carrara S. Políticas e direitos sexuais no Brasil contemporâneo. Bagoas 2010; 5:131-147..

In a nutshell, sexual abuse and corrective rape are based on the abuser’s non-conformity with the victims’ sexuality, be it woman or man. It is a combination of machismo and homophobia. The abuser believes the victim’s sexuality is a moral, biological and social rule transgression, and the idea is to “cure him”²⁴24 Cavalcanti VRS, Santos BC, Lacerda LA. Estupro corretivo na América Latina: analisando a violência sexual contra pessoas LGBTTQIS. In: ME Calazans, ES Piñeiro, organizadoras. As desigualdades de gênero e raça na América Latina no século XXI. Porto Alegre: Editora Fiocruz; 2019. p. 233-262..

Thus, heteronormativity coupled with the hegemonic masculinity model²⁵25 Connell R. Gender and Power. Cambridge: Polity Press; 1987., which establishes culturally and historically the valorization of heterosexual masculinity, configures power relationships between men and women and among men who escape current masculinity patterns, reflecting on sexual violence against gay and “effeminate” men.

Intra-family violence in the process of revealing being gay

Families, in particular the father and mother, had adverse reactions to the revelation of the sexual orientation (sexual orientation’s revelation of these young men), showing little support and the use of violence:

Violent reactions, such as insults, physical abuse, expulsion from home, control, and surveillance, were part of the process of “coming out” to the family. Such reactions are based on heteronormativity as a sexuality-regulating device, including negative moral and religious views on being gay, in which the social and sexual structure based on hetero/gay dualism, in order to prioritize heterosexuality through a device that naturalizes it while making it compulsory²⁶26 Butler J. Problemas de gênero. Rio de Janeiro: Civilização Brasileira; 2003., causing the family to distance itself from the young men when affirming their sexuality.

This distance also reinforces the hegemonic model of masculinity, which establishes the valorization of heterosexual masculinity, subordinating those deviating from the standards of this masculinity²⁷27 Connell R. Masculinities. Berkeley: University of California Press; 1995.. Therefore, violence, prejudice, and discrimination establish a relationship to maintain this masculinity, which needs to be reaffirmed and controlled.

In this sense, the various changes that have taken place in recent decades have not been able to deconstruct or eliminate the “closet”, understood as a device for maintaining the secrecy of gay sexuality, in which the subjects will constantly negotiate their visibility and the acceptability of their desires²⁸28 Saggese G. Quando o Armário é Aberto: visibilidade e estratégias de manipulação no coming out de homens homossexuais [dissertação]. Rio de Janeiro: Universidade do Estado do Rio de Janeiro; 2019..

Intimate partner violence

A young man reported that he suffered sexual violence from his former boyfriend. Another narrated some moments when the abusive relationship was permeated by psychological and symbolic violence, including racism and fatphobia.

We understand sexual violence as an act or attempted sexual act, advances, or unwanted sexual comments against someone’s sexuality through coercion⁹9 Krug EG, Dahlberg LL, Mercy JA, Zwi AB, Lozano R, editores. World Report on violence and health. Geneva: WHO; 2002.. On the other hand, psychological violence includes rejection, depreciation, discrimination, and prohibition of activities by perpetrators, emotionally and psychically affecting the victims²⁹29 Signorini H, Brandão E. Psicologia jurídica no Brasil. Rio de Janeiro: Nau; 2004.. Symbolic violence is demarcated as “violence that is exercised with the tacit complicity of those who suffer it and also, frequently, of those who exercise it since both are unaware of exercising or suffering it”³⁰30 Bourdieu P. Sobre a televisão. Paris: Liber-Raison d´Agir; 1996..

According to the young men:

Intimate partner sexual, psychological, and symbolic violence (IPV) is reported differently during their trajectories. IPV is a continuous abuse of an individual with whom a subject maintains or has had an intimate relationship, be it dating, a hookup, or a marriage between homo or heterosexuals¹1 Minayo MCS, Assis SG, Njaine K, organizadores. Amor e violência: um paradoxo das relações de namoro e do "ficar" entre jovens brasileiros. Rio de Janeiro: Editora Fiocruz; 2011.. Recent studies have debated violence in gay couple relationships³¹31 Cezario ACF, Fonseca DS, Lopes NC, Lourenço LM. Violência entre parceiros íntimos: uma comparação dos índices em relacionamentos hetero e homossexuais. Temas Psicol 2015; 23(3):565-575.

32 Moreira AM. A violência por parceiro íntimo em casais homoafetivos masculinos: visibilizando o fenômeno [dissertação]. Belo Horizonte: Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais; 2017.

33 Santos AM, Caridade S. Violência nas relações íntimas entre parceiros do mesmo sexo: estudo de prevalência. Temas Psicol 2017; 25(3):1357-1371.^-3434 Elísio R, Neves S, Paulos R. A violência no namoro em casais do mesmo sexo: discursos de homens gays. Rev Critica Cien Soc 2018; 117:47-72.. These studies highlight that the invisibility of IPV among gay male couples is reinforced by the fear of pathologization perceived by this group due to the stigma experienced in our society³³33 Santos AM, Caridade S. Violência nas relações íntimas entre parceiros do mesmo sexo: estudo de prevalência. Temas Psicol 2017; 25(3):1357-1371.. Also, prejudice favors its concealment, as IPV victims are afraid to report fearing they will suffer more humiliation, discrimination, and homophobia³¹31 Cezario ACF, Fonseca DS, Lopes NC, Lourenço LM. Violência entre parceiros íntimos: uma comparação dos índices em relacionamentos hetero e homossexuais. Temas Psicol 2015; 23(3):565-575..

We should also consider that dating between men is often seen as a “relationship among equals” with no power asymmetries. The perpetrators regularly use this myth to justify their violent conduct³⁴34 Elísio R, Neves S, Paulos R. A violência no namoro em casais do mesmo sexo: discursos de homens gays. Rev Critica Cien Soc 2018; 117:47-72.. Another critical factor is the idea that “dating is not a place of violence”³⁵35 Gomes R. Invisibilidade da violência nas relações sexuais afetivas. In Minayo MSC, Assis SG, Njaine K. Amor e violência: Um paradoxo das relações de namoro e do 'ficar' entre jovens brasileiros. Rio de Janeiro: Editora Fiocruz; 2011. p. 141-151., occurring only in more stable and lasting relationships, a situation that excludes “dating” and “hooking up”, common among adolescents and young people³⁵35 Gomes R. Invisibilidade da violência nas relações sexuais afetivas. In Minayo MSC, Assis SG, Njaine K. Amor e violência: Um paradoxo das relações de namoro e do 'ficar' entre jovens brasileiros. Rio de Janeiro: Editora Fiocruz; 2011. p. 141-151..

Violence in the relationships known as “hookups”: “stealth breeding”

One of the respondents reported another type of violence in an episodic sexual relationship: removing a condom by the partner without his consent in a “hookup”:

“Stealthing” is most debated in studies on heterosexual relationships. Recent studies³⁶36 Soares R. Retirar o preservativo durante o ato sexual constitui crime? Stealthing analisado à luz do Código Penal Brasileiro [Internet]. JusBrasil; 2017 [acessado 2020 mar 10]. Disponível em: https://renansoares7127.jusbrasil.com.br/artigos/455520761/retirar-o-preservativo-durante-o-ato-sexual-constitui-crime.
https://renansoares7127.jusbrasil.com.br...

37 Lima JD. Sobre o "stealthing", a prática de retirar a camisinha durante a relação sem consentimento da parceira [Internet]. 2017 [acessado 2020 mar 10]. Disponível em: https://arquivoradical.wordpress.com/2017/05/09/sobre-o-stealthing-a-pratica-de-retirar-a-camisinha-durante-a-relacao-sem-consentimento-da-parceira/.
https://arquivoradical.wordpress.com/201... ^-3838 Nunes DH, Lehfeld LS. Stealthing: aspectos acerca da violência de gênero e afronta aos direitos fundamentais. Rev Libertas Direito UFOP 2018; 3(2):93-108. suggest that it is common among heterosexual, sexually active young people and is controversial. Although it seems apparent that it is abusive for many women, others consider it “bad sex”. Many men believe that this is their “natural right” and disseminate the practice over the Internet, giving tips on removing condoms without their partner noticing³⁶36 Soares R. Retirar o preservativo durante o ato sexual constitui crime? Stealthing analisado à luz do Código Penal Brasileiro [Internet]. JusBrasil; 2017 [acessado 2020 mar 10]. Disponível em: https://renansoares7127.jusbrasil.com.br/artigos/455520761/retirar-o-preservativo-durante-o-ato-sexual-constitui-crime.
https://renansoares7127.jusbrasil.com.br... . Such men anchor their actions in misogyny and the belief in male sexual supremacy, often citing the right of men to “spread their seed”³⁸38 Nunes DH, Lehfeld LS. Stealthing: aspectos acerca da violência de gênero e afronta aos direitos fundamentais. Rev Libertas Direito UFOP 2018; 3(2):93-108..

However, removing a condom during sexual intercourse without the partner’s consent is not exclusive to heterosexual relationships. According to some international studies³⁹39 Brennan J. Stealth breeding: bareback without consent. Psychol Sex 2017; 8(4):318-333.

40 Ebrahim S. I'm Not Sure This Is Rape, But: An Exposition of the Stealthing Trend. SAGE Open 2019; 9(2):e2158244019842201.^-4141 Latimer RL, Vodstrcil LA, Fairley CK, Cornelisse VJ, Chow EPF, Read TRH. Non-consensual condom removal, reported by patients at a sexual health clinic in Melbourne. Plos One 2018; 13(12):e0209779., this is called “stealth breeding”.

The practice is considered sex without a condom among men, known as a “bareback”. However, it is characterized by the non-consensual removal of the condom by the active male in the relationship. Interestingly, studies on “stealth breeding” are non-existent in Brazil despite the growing literature on bareback practice in the last ten years⁴²42 Barreto VHS. Risco, prazer e cuidado: técnicas de si nos limites da sexualidade. Ava Rev Antropol 2017; 31:119-142.^,4343 Bezerra VP, Giacomini S. Sem capa: notas sobre o trabalho de campo de uma etnografia sobre o sexo bareback entre homens na cidade do Rio de Janeiro. Teoria Cult 2020; 15:16-31..

AS22, a favela resident, went to meet his partner in an “expensive and fancy” hotel near his home. The young man stressed that he felt “fetishized” for being a favela resident since many men thought he was a drug dealer or “that he only mingled with outlaws”. Therefore, it is essential to consider how the different markers of belonging intertwine in this setting. The encounter between a boy living in the favela, brown and “only passive”, and another boy, an “asphalt” dweller, of privileged social class and “active”, puts in check oppressive relationships, in which power and domination by young, high social class people can neutralize the power of negotiation concerning the non-use of condoms. It is a perspective that addresses the coercive effects of power relations, showing that the relationship between two men can be pretty asymmetrical. Therefore, the power axes established by patriarchy, racism, and class struggle intersect as avenues in which traffic flow defines the multiple oppressions to which a person is subjected⁴⁴44 Crenshaw K. Documento para o Encontro de Especialistas em Aspectos da Discriminação Racial Relativos ao Gênero. Estud Fem 2002; 10:171-188..

Discussing the removal of condoms without the partner’s consent is fundamental for the debate on the experience of healthy sexuality. Stealth breeding transforms a “consensual” sexual relationship into a “non-consensual” one, with victims sometimes not even realizing their partner’s behavior during the act. In this sense, it is essential to consider it as a case of violence.

As a result of what happened, the young man went to a health unit to seek Post-Exposure Prophylaxis (PEP), a prevention technology that consists of using antiretrovirals for 28 days, starting within 72 hours after possible sexual exposure to HIV, made available by SUS⁴⁵45 Maksud I, Fernandes NM, Filgueiras SL. Tecnologias de Prevenção do HIV e desafios para os serviços de saúde. Rev Bras Epidemiol 2015; 18(Supl. 1):104-119.. When seeking PEP, he was faced with the disrespect of the health professional, which translated as institutional violence⁴⁶46 Faleiros VP. Uma experiência de supervisão na área psicossocial: desafios teórico-práticos. Rev Katálysis 2009; 12(2):258-267.. Regarding service:

As can be seen in the narrative, obtaining the PEP still has barriers such as discrimination for those seeking it. Authors⁴⁵45 Maksud I, Fernandes NM, Filgueiras SL. Tecnologias de Prevenção do HIV e desafios para os serviços de saúde. Rev Bras Epidemiol 2015; 18(Supl. 1):104-119.^,4747 Bezerra VP. Cenários políticos brasileiros, conquistas e desafios para as políticas públicas de saúde no contexto da prevenção e tratamento do HIV/AIDS e ISTs. O social em questão 2019; 45:43-66.^,4848 Monteiro S, Brigeiro M. Prevenção do HIV/Aids em municípios da Baixada Fluminense, Rio de Janeiro, Brasil: hiatos entre a política global atual e as respostas locais. Interface (Botucatu) 2019; 23:e180410. indicate that despite the importance of such a prophylaxis strategy, one must consider the persistent moral judgment and stigma around sexuality and the outlook of growing Brazilian conservatism. Therefore, the challenges for the provision of prevention in health services must consider the individual perspective of health professionals and users and the organizational and structural dimension of the services.

Support Networks

The social support network is understood as the set of relationships that a subject perceives as significant in times of stress, such as situations of violence⁴⁹49 Sluzki C. A rede social na prática sistêmica: Alternativas terapêuticas. São Paulo: Casa do Psicólogo; 1997.. Thus, depending on how they are established and their availability and effectiveness in daily life, the social support networks can strengthen bonds of protection to ensure the rights of adolescents and young people and better respond to the complex demands brought about by the violence perpetrated against young gay men⁵⁰50 Deslandes SF. Redes de proteção social e redes sociais: uma práxis integradora. In: Violência faz mal à saúde. Brasília: MS; 2004.. The young men narrated:

Concerning the support networks, it is clear that young people did not go to the police station for fear and shame of denouncing their partner. They did not tell the family about what happened, and almost no friends knew about it, nor did they have any psychological support. They read blogs on the Internet as a way of accepting and elaborating on what happened, indicating a limited institutional and personal support network for their needs.

In a generation of adolescents and young people born connected to the Internet⁵¹51 Oliveira GM. Geração Z: Uma nova forma de sociedade. Ijuí: UNIJUÍ; 2010., the Internet is a prominent tool in all interviews. Despite the limitation, blogs enabled a contact that, while distant, seems to be intimate and close, in which young people perceived “up close” that other people (mostly women) had already had the same experience. Thus, the Internet emerged as a receptive place, something they did not find outside the “virtual world”. It is worth suggesting that this “culture of sharing experiences of violence” is expanded by its articulation with cyberculture and expresses the aspiration of a social bond centered around a common interest and open collaborations⁵²52 Lévy P. Cibercultura. São Paulo: Editora 34; 1999..

This contact becomes even more critical for young gay men from low-income groups, who, without financial conditions, limit themselves to using the Internet to feel supported. These young men consider this space “protected by anonymity”, without the need for significant exhibitions.

It is also noteworthy that all young people reported that their experiences were similar to the experiences of several Brazilian women, which may indicate invisibility in violence among/against gay men in sexuality. Therefore, such invisibility highlights the importance of the social support network as a protective factor against the vulnerabilities to which gay children, adolescents, and young people are exposed. When they perceive themselves to be “different” from their peers, they may have negative thoughts about themselves, internalizing homophobia and often blaming themselves for the situation of violence that has occurred⁸8 Braga IF, Oliveira WA, Silva JL, Mello FCM, Silva MAI. Violência familiar contra adolescentes e jovens gays e lésbicas: um estudo qualitativo. Rev Bras Enferm 2018; 71(Supl. 3):1220-1227..

As shown in the present research, the lack of social support can be associated with greater loneliness after violence in childhood or a relationship during youth. Moreover, this study can also indicate that a social network composed of a small group of peers without the presence of the family seems to derive from experiences of homophobia and discrimination in our society.

Final considerations

Violence is complex and multi-causal and a severe violation of human rights. However, further studies are required on the dynamics of violence to which young gay cisgender men are exposed. Violence in intimate relationships, including family and intimate partners, exposes the level of prejudice, discrimination, and stigma arising from sexual orientation or gender expressions that dissent from heteronormativity and traditional masculinity models. From an intersectional perspective, attention is drawn to the intersection of social markers known to be oppressed and subordinated in Brazilian society, such as social class, race, disability, or feminine gender expressions, which place these young people in situations of greater vulnerability.

It is noteworthy that these countless facets of violence and their articulation with the social markers of difference are not restricted to interpersonal relationships but are also present in the conduct of health professionals pointed out in the case of institutional violence. Once again, prejudice against homosexuality is clear. In this sense, the fact that these young gay men have an impoverished support network and use blogs and other digital media searching for help and experience sharing is not surprising.

We highlight the need to outline public policies to promote care for gay cisgender adolescents and young men, which are supportive in addressing situations of violence and the vulnerabilities to which they are continuously exposed in their intimate relationships. We understand that a multisectoral social support network is essential for tackling violence, thus minimizing the vulnerability to violence and, consequently, increasing the protective factors in the health and well-being of these young people.

References

Publication Dates

History