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Loading ...Study finds shift in gay demographic
08.05.2008 4:36pm EDT
(New York City) A new study finds a vast generational shift among LGBT people.
The survey, for Logo Network, discovered that more LGBT people expect to lead an integrated life raising families in suburbs or small towns while maintaining their identity and sense of community.
The study was conducted in in partnership with Simmons and TRU. 365gay is owned by Logo, a division of Viacom Inc.’s MTV Networks.The survey found that 79 percent of gay people think it’s important to integrate into the greater culture and 64 percent are open about their sexual orientation to at least their family members.
It also found that less than half of gay people want to live in a city and a majority want to live in suburbia or small-town America. Regardless of where they want to live, 58 percent want to live closer to other gay people.
The researchers said that two-thirds of younger gay people expect to be partnered with kids at some point in their adulthood, while less than a third of gays 35 and older expect the same.
Younger gay people have an even mix of gay and straight friends, the network said in a statement. And overall, gay people rank marriage equality as the number one issue about which they’re passionate, followed by the environment, health care and the economy.
“We’re trading in West Hollywood for West Texas and big disposable incomes for disposable diapers,” said Lisa Sherman, Executive Vice President and General Manager, Logo.
“Most important, we’re integrating without abandoning our community or sense of identity. These developments are good for LGBT people and good for America.”
The research also found that despite gay people’s love for mainstream media, they want entertainment that speaks to their uniquely gay lives and experiences. Sherman said that this finding supports Logo’s efforts to develop programming like the recent Sordid Lives: The Series that tell authentic LGBT stories, sometimes with many LGBT characters and sometimes only a few.
The research involved a qualitative study in partnership with TRU Research of 21-45 year olds in New York and Dallas as well as a national survey in partnership with Simmons of 1,800 LGBT people between the ages of 21 and 59.
It’s true that you can’t assimilate without losing some cultural identity, but honestly the only reason a queer culture exists is because of persecution. If non-straight sexualities were an accepted part of normal human sexuality there would be no need for a gay community in the first place.
History is great and now that we have a gay culture, yes I do think it has to be celebrated and remembered, but I think assimilation is a good trend for the future and should be emphasized over remembrance. At least a little.
Does this show an actual demographic shift? Or is the only shift in who is being asked and surveyed? Notice there’s not one word on how many 21-45 year olds were surveyed vs. the 1800 surveyed “nationally”. And they’re calling this a shift by comparing this survey to what other surveys conducted when and where? One could easily construct a “shift” if you compared a survey of West Hollywood with one of say Iowa.
You are all correct. Unfortunately, Steve MD2, the conservative (Republican) mind caters to the un-gay, the un-minority, the un-poor, etc. Their best weapon against all these is suspicion and hatred. And are we surprised? The 2008 election will be no different, I fear. Karl Rove is gone, but not dead. However, progress always wins in the long run.
You can not assimilate without losing some degree of cultural identity. Look at the various ethnic group that immigrated and as they assimilated to varying degrees part of their cultural folkways was lost. The key, and it is difficult, is to pass along to younger gays and lesbians the history of how things got to the point where they can assimilate.
This study shows what everyone else already knows. This is the reason why haters are hating even more. They know that we are a force to be reckoned with. Why wouldn’t people that are gay want children? We are just as caring and loving. Now if we could only put this study to a reality test and show the world that we can provide for children and shower them with love.
Sounds to me like they are relatively ordinary people. Isn’t it a crime what parts of our society, especially conservative churches do to them. And isn’t it a crime that the republican party caters to the haters of Gays, just exactly like they gained political power in the south after Lyndon Johnson passed civil rights laws, leading to the beginnings of knocking down slavery’s successor – terrorism based segregation.
What ever happened to “with liberty and justice for all”, and freedom of and FROM religion?