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View Full Version : Openly Gay Pop in the US booming; Utah soars from 38th to 14th "Gayest" State


dimondpark
Nov 20, 2007, 7:37 PM
An interesting look at Gay Demographics in the US. Times are changing in some of the most unlikely places.


Mountain states such as New Mexico and Colorado now rate among the nation's "gayest" states, ranking 2nd and 9th in the concentration of same-sex couples. Utah, where President Bush received more than 70% of the vote in 2004, has moved from 38th in 1990 to 14th in the most recent rankings.

The bellwether state might be Utah. In 2005, Salt Lake City approved a benefits programs for lesbian and gay couples. Identifying openly as gay no longer represents an honor code violation at Brigham Young University. And, perhaps most striking, the state now has three openly gay state legislators. That's one more then the US Congress. Shades of purple ?

Top 10 states
The data, from the 2006 American Community Survey, reflects the number of same-sex couple households per 1,000 households by state.
1 Vermont 9.71
2 New Mexico 9.03
3 Massachusetts 8.99
4 Washington 8.94
5 Oregon 8.83
6 New Hampshire 8.73
7 Maine 8.57
8 California 8.50
9 Colorado 7.79
10 Rhode Island 7.63

Top 10 cities
The data, from the 2006 American Community Survey, reflects the number of same-sex couple households per 1,000 households in the top 50 most populous cities.
1 San Francisco 28.72
2 Seattle 21.27
3 Minneapolis 18.68
4 Portland 16.945
5 Sacramento 16.36
6 Oakland 15.62
7 Boston 14.72
8 Washington 13.49
9 Atlanta 13.32
10 Long Beach 12.80

National change
Same-sex couples per 1,000 households:
1990 1.56
2000 5.61
2006 6.79

http://www.law.ucla.edu/williamsinstitute/publications/ACSBriefFinal.pdf

totheskies
Nov 20, 2007, 7:50 PM
Great article!!!!

I find it shocking that more and more gay couples are moving to the suburbs. They must be going after that "American Dream" like everyone else.

The city and state stats are pretty cool too. I would have never thought that the state of Texas would have more gay couples than the state of New York.

ginsan2
Nov 20, 2007, 7:52 PM
Minneapolis is what surprises me. Who knew?

dimondpark
Nov 20, 2007, 7:57 PM
Im so proud of Utah its not even funny.

Salt Lake City isn't one of the top 50(largest cities), but if it had been included, Gates says, it would have hit No. 13 in 2000 and vaulted to No. 8 in 2006, knocking Washington, D.C., down to No. 9 for density of households headed by same-sex couples.

http://origin.sltrib.com/ci_7439427

CenIL_LA
Nov 20, 2007, 7:59 PM
Minneapolis is what surprises me. Who knew?

The twin cities are a pretty friendly and accepting place....overall. I wonder how they conducted the survey. Its interesting that Utah would acquire a sizable group. Getting a true idea on numbers on numbers of people or communities is quite difficult I'd imagine.

galaca
Nov 20, 2007, 8:30 PM
Interesting that Atlanta lost gay population while its suburbs boomed. I wonder if that means they're a lot of Log Cabin Republicans there...

sprtsluvr8
Nov 20, 2007, 8:41 PM
Interesting that Atlanta lost gay population while its suburbs boomed. I wonder if that means they're a lot of Log Cabin Republicans there...


It isn't a measure of gay population...this survey counts the number of same-sex households. I guess single doesn't count, and most of the gay people I know are single...

fflint
Nov 20, 2007, 8:42 PM
There are no statistics here on "openly gay" populations--only on purported gay couples. In places where most gays are single, this study will be useless in helping determine "gay population".

MayorOfChicago
Nov 20, 2007, 9:03 PM
^ exactly. I know a ton of gay people in Chicago. None of them are living in a "household" with a partner.

Rusty van Reddick
Nov 20, 2007, 9:11 PM
I don't like to see same-sex couples as a proxy for how many G/L people there actually are- and as a sociologist I wish to hell there were a good way to measure it. But this stuff is interesting.

dimondpark
Nov 20, 2007, 9:56 PM
I suppose you are all correct. I totally should have titled the thread differently.:D

However,
The findings I think are promising nonetheless.:tup:

rapid_business
Nov 20, 2007, 10:13 PM
There are no statistics here on "openly gay" populations--only on purported gay couples. In places where most gays are single, this study will be useless in helping determine "gay population".

I guess the number at a household level are obvious as this is information avalible at a municipal and public level. But census data or civic census data doesn't specify sexual orientation (or do some? I highly doubt it.) so that statistic is lost. From a raw data perspective it's sad, because the number is hypothesized both higher then it actually is, and lower. (depending who's doing the calcualtions and what their motive is)

Dr Nevergold
Nov 21, 2007, 2:02 AM
There are no statistics here on "openly gay" populations--only on purported gay couples. In places where most gays are single, this study will be useless in helping determine "gay population".

I was surprised to see Portland above places like Chicago, so I'm not sure where these stats are coming from. Portland is super gay friendly, but still. There just aren't the numbers of gay men here I don't think.

Who knows?

Jeff_in_Dayton
Nov 21, 2007, 3:43 AM
6 of the 10 are on the West Coast, or near it (Sacramento # 5?).

I can tell you, even 20 years ago, there was a BIG difference in attitude between Sacto and Dayton, when I moved here. It's taken Dayton 20 years, 20 years to catch up to maybe pass an anti-discrimination ordnance this week.

I did a geography of same sex households in Dayton and suburbs and posted it at my blog (based on 2000 census and mapped by tract). The interesting thing is that the larger numbers were in the suburbs (where I live).

pdxtex
Nov 21, 2007, 12:21 PM
as a whole, the entire country has become a more tolerant place. thats good! we still have a long way to go but its encouraging to see some of these stats....

Chicago3rd
Nov 21, 2007, 8:36 PM
I was surprised to see Portland above places like Chicago, so I'm not sure where these stats are coming from. Portland is super gay friendly, but still. There just aren't the numbers of gay men here I don't think.

Who knows?

PDX is by percentage. Portland has one of the highest populations of Lesbains in the Country as does surprise surprise Milwaukie, WI.

Hell San Francisco beats Chicago by percentage...but by total numbers of actual gay people Chicago of course beats both cities in total numbers of gay and lesbians just because of our shear size.

Not only is this method of counting very weak I would like to also through into the mix that gays on the coast would be much more open to reporting their couplehood than midwesterners....paradoxically midwesterners are probably more into fitting into the "mainstream" image of what a relationship is than are those on the coasts.

stepper77
Nov 21, 2007, 9:49 PM
I am so happy to see Sacramento in there. I can use this to stick to my gay friends in the Bay Area who always look down on my former home as another backwards valley town.

It is also great to hear the things coming out of Utah. I had thought Salt Lake City was somewhat more progressive than it was given credit for, and it seems like this shows that it is.

IdahoMountainBoy
Nov 22, 2007, 12:54 AM
as a whole, the entire country has become a more tolerant place. thats good! we still have a long way to go but its encouraging to see some of these stats....

I disagree, it's a fallacy that this country is generally more accepting of homosexuals (of it course it in comparison to the 1960s but I would argue little progress has been made recently). These stats accomplish nothing but illustrating we, as gays, finally understand the meaning monogamy...Thank god

SpongeG
Nov 22, 2007, 6:50 AM
Great article!!!!

I find it shocking that more and more gay couples are moving to the suburbs. They must be going after that "American Dream" like everyone else.

The city and state stats are pretty cool too. I would have never thought that the state of Texas would have more gay couples than the state of New York.

why would you find it shocking?

most gay people I know or chat to live in the suburbs and always have or mostly have and have no desire to move onto a "gay ghetto" aka a bigger closet

ignatius
Nov 22, 2007, 6:03 PM
What this also doesn't factor is that people will tend to live together in very high cost cities to cut costs. So in low cost cities, there may be many more gay partners that aren't living together.

Jeff_in_Dayton
Nov 23, 2007, 2:45 AM
Suburban gay life is a bit of a closet itself, if one is living in some largish apartment or condo complex, where things are fairly anyonymous.

alleystreetindustry
Nov 24, 2007, 9:53 PM
im pretty sure atlanta was 3rd at some point within the past decade, but i take it the amount of urbanization the city is going through has dulled out the density/percentage of gay households. it still feels amazing to see atlanta in the top ten though, but america's boat has to turn around at some point.

larryfla
Dec 1, 2007, 9:06 PM
It isn't a measure of gay population...this survey counts the number of same-sex households. I guess single doesn't count, and most of the gay people I know are single...


There are lots of guys and girls live together because they can't get dates or may not even want them. That doesn't mean they are gay. It only means that they may do themselves without the help of a partner.

atlantaguy
Dec 2, 2007, 6:19 PM
Yeah, but this is talking about people who consider themselves "partnered."

There was a place to check that on the last Census forms that came around, and some people think it's a measure of how gay a place is or isn't.

IFtowner
Mar 14, 2008, 1:52 AM
Oh God. Utah... I never WOULD have EVER thought? Good for Utah.

UTPlanner
May 27, 2008, 9:58 PM
I happen to stumble on this thread as I was...working? Anyhow I am an openly gay man living and working in SLC, UT. I have lived in a few different metro areas around the country: LA, NYC, and Atlanta, so I do have some basis for comparison I have to admit that in the urban areas of SLC people are extremely tolerant. I introduce my partner as such and have never been rebuffed. Though if you travel far into suburban SLC opinions change dramatically. SLC is a liberal island in the most republican state in the nation. I have very much enjoyed being in this state though as a traveled man I am feeling the itch to find a new home elsewhere.

weatherguru18
May 28, 2008, 1:48 AM
I think that if all gay people were to turn purple for a week once a year, you'd be amazed at how many people would be purple. I think there are a lot more than we realize among us. Not that that's a bad thing, I'm just saying. I live in a very red city in a ruby red state and the other night I went out with the neighbors and little did I know that 6 of the guys were gay. I couldn't believe it. These are decent, classy, masculine, the "I'd never have guessed" guys. I was pretty shocked. Good for them.

NorthScottsdale
May 28, 2008, 2:00 AM
not all gays are liberal... red and blue states dont really matter im republican in a republican state (arizona) and am gay, and a lot of my friends are republican too. also, most of the people i know are single... so this study isnt very accurate. i wonder where phoenix ranks there is a huge community here in phx..

BA744PHX
May 28, 2008, 5:08 PM
That is true NorthScottsdale I'm also a gay republican formally from Arizona

PhxSprawler
May 28, 2008, 5:31 PM
That's great that you two support the social conservatism and anti-homosexuality that the Republican party has represented so well over the past few decades, but you are a rarity. MOST of your Republican counter-parts do not support you or your "lifestyle" choice (see exit polls), and a large reason why MOST homosexuals are socially liberal.

Also, this study is only about same-sex couples, so it would be quite accurate to exclude single gay men and women. I am sure if you drew lines around central Phoenix and excluded the suburban areas, it would be near the top of the list.

I agree with UTPlanner that Salt Lake City is a liberal island that understands homosexuality and embraces diversity. It causes gay folk to flock to the central city and away from the socially conservative (and mostly Republican) suburban Utah neighborhoods, just as San Francisco attracts LGBT couples from all over the world because of its reputation as a liberal haven.

alexjon
May 28, 2008, 5:50 PM
^^^ And similarly an island within its region in many respects.

fflint
May 29, 2008, 2:31 AM
^^^ And similarly an island within its region in many respects.
What do you mean?

alexjon
May 29, 2008, 4:14 AM
What do you mean?

Like any big city, there are quite a few areas within the region that make you realize just how liberal the central city itself is.

PhxSprawler
May 29, 2008, 3:50 PM
Like any big city, there are quite a few areas within the region that make you realize just how liberal the central city itself is.

Salt Lake is one of the few cities in the region. If you are in such glamourous places as Evanston, WY, Malad, ID, or Wendover, NV, Salt Lake City is your closest option if you want to be around gay people.

wkiehl101
Jun 21, 2008, 10:02 PM
As far as the southeast goes, would any of you consider Atlanta to be a "gay mecca?" I have gotten the impression from a few that it is. Kinda hard to believe, being in the midst of the bible belt and all...The Raleigh/Durham/Chapel Hill area seems to be the most progressive part of North Carolina (I'm really not sure if that's saying much though)...what other possible "islands of tolerance" might exist in the south?

alexjon
Jun 22, 2008, 12:09 AM
Atlanta would be. It has one of the highest percentages of gay people in the US after SF and Seattle.

weatherguru18
Jun 24, 2008, 2:48 AM
Oh, they are plentiful in Houston as well. The pride parade next week is expected to draw 150,000! Obviously not all of them will be gay, but that's a lot of tolerant people as well.

Eeyore
Apr 6, 2009, 2:05 AM
GO IOWA! That is awsome they have gay marriage!

Pizzuti
Apr 24, 2009, 8:09 PM
There has to be some bias of location. Everyone says "my city is the largest gay city outside New York and San Fransico" based on their personal observations, just like everyone says their dog is more intelligent than most other dogs. These are observations made without really clear statistical backing.

I think it would stand to reason that larger cities have a greater gay population because they contain more straight people, and we need straight people to produce gay babies.

Whether that population is concentrated in a highly-visible neighborhood or dispersed throuought the generally "liberal" areas is going to depend on the culture of the city. I'd guess that gay populations in more conservative cities are more likely to concentrate in one bubble therefore be more highly visible. So being in a conservative state (like Texas) means your gayborhood is more visible because people flood in from the suburbs and concentrate in Austin and Houston. Same is probably true from Atlanta.

I know walking around Denver would give you the impression that way more than "ten percent" of the population is gay, because people flood in from all of Colorado, from New Mexico, Kansas, Wyoming, Oklahoma, etc. But we also have moderately gay-friendly suburbs, so there are more places to go to. Perhaps in Utah you really have to concentrate in Salt Lake because the suburban parts of the state are more hostile.

Pizzuti
Apr 24, 2009, 8:31 PM
As for the presence of gay Republicans, should we even really be surprised?

I see a lot of frustration and animosity toward gay conservatives, and while I, personally, really oppose most political "conservative" thinking in the Amerian context, I don't think it's worth it to express indignation or shock. I'm not surprised in the least.

Most gay Republicans identify as libertarian in some sense. I'll give you that there is an accumulation of views in the conservative movement in which socially conservative peole are also economically conservative - so economic conservatives remind you of anti-gay people. There must be some psychology at the root of that - maybe the beleif, among conservatives, that undesirable "social deviants" are also the ones collecting and benefitting most from social programs.

But not all views necessarily aggregate. There are socially conservative people who are supportive of gun control. There are anti-abortion people who think that free healthcare is a human right. And so forth - there are all kinds of outliers, and I'd venture to say that MOST americans have at least one view that counters their sterereotypical position on the left vs. right continuum.

Say that you growing up in a very conservative Republican household, and at the age of 15 you realize you are gay. Your anti-homosexuality views are going to liberalize quite quickly because of your own self-interest. You know, from experience, that it's not a "choice," that you aren't the destruction of western society, and that you'd like to get married someday. So suddenly you are a "liberal" when it comes to gay rights.

But you've also been taught that immigrants are fundementally untrustworthy and threaten our english-speaking American culture or tradition. Are your views on that going to change because you are gay?

You've been taught that welfare programs are just giveaways to lazy and careless drug-addicted people. Are your views on that going to change just because you are gay?

You've been taught that healthcare is a privelege, not a right, and if you can't afford it you don't deserve it. Are your views on that going to change just because you are gay?

SOME of your views may liberalize because of your sexuality if you are intellectual enough to find paralells from one form of marginalization with other, superficially unrelated forms of marginalization. You may, obviously, be more resistant to your parents' racism because it reminds you of their homophobia. You will be resistant to a lot of arguments against abortion or sexual ethics that come from religious conservative organizations because they remind you of their arguments against gay rights. You might meet a number of people with HIV and your positions on healthcare will liberalize because you realize how few options they have and count them among your friends. You might understand how discrimination continues to exist even among outwardly tolerant organizations and you'll become more open to affirmative action or civil rights lawsuits.

But it doesn't mean that every issue liberalizes. You still may love owning guns. You still may oppose immigration. You still may think that global warming is a myth perpetuated by zellous environmentalists. You still may think a 35% tax rate is way to high. You still may think that Islam is evil, and the fact that you're gay might help that prejudice along because you recognize homophobia in Islamic societies.

Running through the rolodex of my political beleifs I don't think I hold a single conservative view - but honestly, I don't think it's fair to hate on gay Republicans either. You are no more no less obligated to adopt "better" views on an issue because of your sexual orientation - I levy no more judgement than I would on any Republican who is not gay.

SpawnOfVulcan
Aug 2, 2009, 5:43 AM
What I find interesting is that Alabama's openly gay population growth rate has been increasing and is one of the highest in the country.

lawfin
Aug 2, 2009, 7:28 AM
Does it count the closedly gay as well...what is the difference between closedly gay and openly gay

SpawnOfVulcan
Aug 2, 2009, 7:42 AM
That's a good question. The article did say, if I remember correctly, that it combined the stats with estimates too.