This context can be referred to as heterosexism, an ideological system that denies, denigrates, and stigmatizes any nonheterosexual form of behavior, identity, relationship, or community. This context of heterosexism is created in part by laws and regulations concerning employment discrimination, housing discrimination, sexual privacy, military service, and the legal status of homosexual couples. Twenty-five years ago, homosexuality was classified as a mental illness. Federal law does not prohibit discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation. Federal employment policies toward homosexuals vary depending on whether a position is civilian or military and whether or not it requires a security clearance. Eight States and several dozen municipalities now prohibit employment discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, but 23 States and the District of Columbia currently have sodomy laws in effect. The cumulative effects of these laws is to make homosexuals second-class citizens and to legitimize or even encourage attacks against them. Victimization through a hate crime can create special psychological problems for homosexual victims in addition to those experienced by victims of other crimes. The problem of prejudice and violence against homosexuals deserves serious attention by applied social psychologists. 114 references