A recent survey from the Williams Institute at the University of California — a leading research center on sexual orientation and gender ID law and public policy — finds Vermont is the state with the seventh highest number of people identifying as LGBTQ in the country, according to Vermont’s independent online news site VT Digger.
In New England, only Massachusetts has more residents identifying as LGBTQ, coming in at number three on the Williams Institute survey. The other five US states with more people identifying as LGBTQ than Vermont are all on the West Coast, except for the District of Columbia, the survey finds.
Reports VT Digger:
The data comes amid a recent report that the number of LGBTQ-identifying adults is rising nationwide. About 7% of adults said they considered themselves to be lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender or something “other than heterosexual” in 2021, compared to 3.5% of respondents in 2012, according to Gallup.
Members of “Generation Z,” born from 1997 to 2003, were the most likely to report as LGBTQ, according to the national survey. About 21% said they identified that way, compared to 11% of Millennials and even lower rates among older generations.
The data comes amid a recent report that the number of LGBTQ-identifying adults is rising nationwide. About 7% of adults said they considered themselves to be lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender or something “other than heterosexual” in 2021, compared to 3.5% of respondents in 2012, according to Gallup.
Members of “Generation Z,” born from 1997 to 2003, were the most likely to report as LGBTQ, according to the national survey. About 21% said they identified that way, compared to 11% of Millennials and even lower rates among older generations.
In Vermont, too, young adults are leading the state in LGBTQ identification. About 25% of LGBTQ Vermonters are between ages 18 and 24, according to the Williams Institute.
The data is a rare insight into the demographics of LGBTQ folks in Vermont, since data collection on those communities has historically been fairly limited, said Kate Jerman, director of the Prism Center, an office that supports LGBTQ people at the University of Vermont. The 2020 Census was the first decennial Census to collect data on same-sex couples.
“I hope this Williams (Institute) data is kind of a piece of that puzzle, but I think we need much better data collection,” Jerman said.
Read the complete Feb. 28 Vermont Digger story here.
Not a subscriber? Sign up today for a free subscription to Boston Spirit magazine, New England’s premier LGBT magazine. We will send you a copy of Boston Spirit 6 times per year and we never sell/rent our subscriber information. Click HERE to sign up!
