Asexual people around the world face pathologization, discrimination, and violence, according to a new report from Outright International.
The LGBTQ+ rights organization teamed with British asexual activist Yasmin Benoit and asexual advocates from Australia, Bangladesh, Botswana, Hungary, India, Indonesia, Italy, Kenya, Mexico, and Vietnam to develop the report on global asexual human rights. Its goal, the organization says, is “to call the attention of policymakers, human rights organizations, and queer movement leaders to these abuses and support discussions on how we can better address the specific needs and demands of asexual people.”
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“I’m constantly asked about how asexual people are discriminated against,” Benoit told Gay Times. “Now, we have a report that explains just how extensive the issue is.”
The report defines asexuality as “an umbrella term used to describe people who experience little to no sexual attraction toward others, regardless of their gender.” It also notes that some asexual or “ace” people describe asexuality as a spectrum. Limited research, mostly from Western Europe and North America, indicates that asexual people account for a small percent of the population. Yet they still are subjected to discrimination, including the assumption that they are mentally ill or sexually dysfunctional, according to the report.
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“Asexual people face pathologization, discrimination, and violence linked to their sexual orientation,” the report states. “They are impacted by conversion practices, sexual violence, school bullying, workplace harassment, and healthcare discrimination.”
A 2022 survey of asexual people found that over 10% of the nearly 9,000 who responded said they had been offered, advised to undergo, or subjected to conversion practices aimed at changing their sexual orientation. The report also cites multiple surveys from the U.K., U.S., Spain, Vietnam, and Australia that found that asexual people are disproportionately likely to have experienced some form of conversion practice, including in some cases sexual assault or intimate partner violence aimed at “correcting” their sexual orientation.
According to the report, asexual people are frequently misdiagnosed with a medical condition, creating barriers to proper healthcare and contributing to the pathologization of asexuality. The report cites the World Health Organization’s International Classification of Diseases (ICD), which defines Hypoactive Sexual Desire Dysfunction (HSDD) as “the absence or marked reduction in desire or motivation to engage in sexual activity… associated with clinically significant distress,” but does not acknowledge asexual people who do not experience distress or dysfunction. Meanwhile, a 2015 study of 423 individuals in Canada found “notable differences” between people who identify as asexual and those who meet the diagnostic criteria for HSDD, concluding that “asexuality is a category distinct from a sexual desire dysfunction.”
Anti-LGBTQ+ laws in countries around the world can also be interpreted as criminalizing asexuality, even if they don’t explicitly mention it, the report notes. At the same time, laws protecting LGBTQ+ people from discrimination rarely include explicit protections for asexuals.
“Erroneous beliefs that asexual people do not exist, that asexuality is not a legitimate sexual orientation, or that asexual people do not experience discrimination and violence render them invisible in national laws and policies, including antidiscrimination protections,” the report states.
“It’s happening all over the world,” Benoit told Gay Times of discrimination against the asexual community. “It’s never been more important to stand up for the asexual community and for our LGBTQIA+ organizations to be asexual-inclusive.”
“States must respond to these human rights violations with asexual-inclusive policy and legislation,” added Outright International research and program associate Venus Aves. “At the same time, universal human rights protections and laws that prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation should be understood to include asexual people.”
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