The co-chair of the Bisexual, Gay, Lesbian, Transgender and Supporters' Alliance (BGLTSA) at Harvard agreed that the attacks have grown more violent in recent years.

"There's been so much truly horrendous crime against gay people in recent months that you'd have to be pretty naive to be surprised" by the increase in serious injuries reported, said Adam A. Sofen '01, who is also a Crimson editor.

"Obviously I find it very troubling that we find these kind of statistics even in a liberal place like Massachusetts," Sofen added.

According to the NCAVP, national numbers mirror the rend in Massachusetts. Nationwide, the number of serious injuries to gays resulting from attacks increased by 12 percent while the number of incidents of violence of harassment against gays decreased by 4 percent.

The data for the NCAVP's national report was gathered from 16 nationwide tracking programs.

Incidents are not reported for various reasons, Shannon said.

"It's important that people report what's happening to them, "Shannon said. The VRP provides services, community education and reassures victims that "they're not crazy," Shannon said.

"It's important that we have adequate statistics on the violence that is occurring in our state," he said.

Citing the fact that there were only 16 nationwide tracking programs, Shannon said it was clear that the United States as a whole was not adequately represented in the report.

"It [the report] shows that hate crimes laws are useful but no substitute for education and understanding," Sofen said.