While 92 percent of the 1,197 LGBT adults surveyed agree that not only has life gotten better for those who identify as LGBT, but the next decade will bring even more acceptance, there was one discrepancy.
Most people who identify as LGBT say society has grown more accepting in the last decade, according to the first-ever survey of LGBT individuals by the Pew Research Center.
While 92 percent of the 1,197 LGBT adults surveyed agree that not only has life gotten better for those who identify as LGBT, but the next decade will bring even more acceptance, there was one discrepancy. The survey points out that just 39 percent have revealed their sexual identity to their father; 56 percent have told their mother.
“Nine in 10 of LGBT surveyed feel they have become more accepted in the past decade and just as many say they expect the acceptance to increase in the coming decade. In our business, when you see those numbers, that’s pretty dramatic,” Paul Taylor, executive vice president of the Pew Research Center, told TIME.
“But that needs to be kept in perspective, because while these are the best of times, that doesn’t mean it’s the easiest time. Even in a time of feeling more socially accepted, fewer than 6 in 10 have told their mothers about their sexual orientation or gender identity and fewer than 4 in 10 have told their fathers–that suggests the complicated realms of their lives.”
There’s still room for improvement, the survey shows:
*39 percent said they’ve been rejected by a family member or close friend because of their sexual orientation or gender identity
*30 percent said they have been physically attacked or threatened
*58 percent said they have been the target of slurs or jokes
The group, in general, is less happy with their lives than the general public, but happier with the direction the country is headed. The recent changes in acceptance were attributed to people knowing someone who identifies as LGBT, advocacy by public figures, and LGBT parents.
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