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Homophobia in ethnic minority communities is any negative prejudice or form of discrimination in ethnic minority communities worldwide towards people who identify as–or are perceived as being–lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender , known as homophobia. This may be expressed as antipathy, contempt, prejudice, aversion, hatred, irrational fear, and is sometimes related to religious beliefs. While religion can have a positive function in many LGB Black and Minority Ethnic communities, it can also play a role in supporting homophobia.
Different regions of the world and different nations have unique conceptions of which groups are considered ethnic minorities. In many Western nations where people of color are seen as ethnic minorities, homophobia that is not usually associated with the nation's dominant culture may arise as a result of that ethnic community's norms.
Many LGBT ethnic minority persons rely on members of their ethnic group for support on racial matters. Within these communities, homophobia and transphobia often exist within the context of ethnocultural norms on gender and sexual orientation; one American researcher wrote; "a common fallacy within communities of color is that gay men or lesbians are perceived as 'defective' men or women who want to be a member of the opposite gender".
In some cultures there are difficulties in categorising homosexuality. Some scholars have argued that Western notions of sexual identity began to emerge in Europe in the mid-to-late 19th century, though others challenge this. Behaviors that would be widely regarded as homosexual in the West were regarded as acceptable in around three quarters of the cultures surveyed in Patterns of Sexual Behavior.