Institutional violence refers to violence, crime, and harm perpetrated by someone representing an institution and/or with the implicit or explicit approval of that institution. This may look like assault by staff at an inpatient mental health facility or unnecessary strip searches in detention facilities. The well-known cases of Olympic physicians sexually assaulting athletes could be considered institutional abuse – since the physician was representing a larger organization. Institutional abuse also happens when abuse occurs in institutions or facilities that people are forced to interact with. This includes schools, jails/prisons, and hospitals.
Institutional violence happens within specific systems that trans and nonbinary people interact with, including healthcare or carceral systems.