Shouldering the Double Burden of Homophobia and Racism Alone: Challenges to Seeking Social Support and Finding Community Among Sexual Minorities of Color

Social support is important to well-being, and people with more supportive social networks tend to be healthier. Sexual minorities are generally at risk of worse health outcomes, and as "double minorities," sexual minorities of color are vulnerable to experiences of both homophobia and racism. Yet, we know little about how they navigate their social relationships or how efficacious these relationships are. This study draws from 25 in-depth interviews of Black and Latino/a sexual minority adults, finding that respondents experience conditional social support from their networks. Familial ties are ill-equipped to provide support related to their sexual identity but more equipped to provide support related to racism. Inversely, ties to the LGBTQ community provide support related to sexual identity but impose challenges related to racial identity. Our analysis makes two novel contributions regarding social belonging among sexual minorities of color: First, strong ties and shared identity are not inherently predictive of the accessibility or quality of social support. Second, social integration and isolation are not mutually exclusive but can be experienced simultaneously. Given that social support and community ties can be health protective, this study provides insight into effective community building that meets the comprehensive needs of sexual minorities of color.