298985
‘Coming Out' of Prison: The Experiences and Service Needs of LGBT Elder in Prison and Post Reentry
A cross-sectional online survey was conducted of community corrections staff (N=28) and in-person in-depth interviews of 30 older adults released from prison in New York metropolitan area. Nine participants identified themselves as gay (n=7) and lesbians (n=2). A thematic analysis was conducted to identify factors were identified that facilitated or created barriers to their successful reintegration.
Staff reported about 50% of older adults on their caseloads served over 20 years, 10% were LGBT elders, and 27% needed placement in long term nursing or hospice care. The most complex array of reentry needs were identified that included housing, employment, and health and mental health care. Agency biases based on LGBT or formerly incarcerated statuses created barriers to their successful community placement. LGBT participants reported lifetime experiences of homophobia, harassment, and discrimination in the community and in prison and a lack of LGBT sensitive services but also a form of resistant resilience to oppression.
These findings suggest the need for culturally responsive services that address the intersectional identities of formerly incarcerated LGBT elders, which include counseling, peer, family, and community support, and service linkages to housing, employment, and integrated healthcare, and advocacy.
Learning Areas:
Diversity and cultureSocial and behavioral sciences
Learning Objectives:
Explain the relationship to cumulative disparities to later life health and justice disparities
Identify the factors that facilitate or create barriers to health and well-being among LGBT elders in prison or post prison release
Discuss how mixed methods research methods can be used with LGBT elders involved in the criminal justice system and articulate the research, practice, and policy advocacy implications for LGBT elders involved in the criminal justice system.
Keyword(s): Aging, Criminal Justice
Qualified on the content I am responsible for because: I am an associate professor at the Fordham University Graduate School of Social Service. I have published and presented in the area of aging and the criminal justice systems, especially as it relates to social inequalities and health disparities.
Any relevant financial relationships? No
I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.