ANNUAL GLAAD ACCELERATING ACCEPTANCE STUDY: MAJORITY OF AMERICANS BELIEVE LGBTQ PEOPLE HAVE FEDERAL PROTECTIONS FROM DISCRIMINATION IN AREAS OF LIFE IN WHICH THEY DO NOT

Contact:
Spencer Harvey
Communications Coordinator, GLAAD
sharvey@glaad.org

The majority of non-LGBTQ and LGBTQ Americans believe that it is illegal to deny or evict LGBTQ people from housing, turn a LGBTQ person away from a restaurant/other public place of business, deny employment benefits to the same-sex partner of an employee, and ban physically qualified transgender people from serving in the military

Despite the lack of awareness about federal protections for LGBTQ people, a significant majority of non-LGBTQ people believe that it should be illegal for LGBTQ people to be discriminated against in these situations

Among seven different personal scenarios, non-LGBTQ people are least comfortable with their child having a lesson on LGBTQ history in school

New York, NY, Thursday, October 29, 2020 – GLAAD, the world’s largest lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) media advocacy organization, today announced the findings of its sixth annual Accelerating Acceptance Study, a national survey among U.S. adults conducted using a sample sourced by Cint. The study measures American attitudes towards, and understanding of, LGBTQ people.

For the full report, visit glaad.org/acceptance.

This year, the Accelerating Acceptance Study found that a majority of Americans, both LGBTQ and non-LGBTQ, believe that LGBTQ people have federal protections in areas of life in which they do not. Non-LGBTQ respondents were more likely than LGBTQ respondents to believe LGBTQ people  have federal protections in various situations. 

• 89% of non-LGBTQ respondents and 78% of LGBTQ respondents believe it is currently illegal to evict someone from housing because they are LGBTQ.
• 80% of non-LGBTQ respondents and 65% of LGBTQ respondents believe it is currently illegal to turn individuals away from a restaurant/other public place of business because they are LGBTQ.
• 87% of non-LGBTQ respondents and 75% of LGBTQ respondents believe it is currently illegal to deny renting or selling housing to someone because they are LGBTQ.
• 78% of non-LGBTQ respondents and 70% of LGBTQ respondents believe it is currently illegal to deny employment benefits (pension or health insurance coverage) to an employee’s same-sex partner.
• 55% of non-LGBTQ respondents and 53% of LGBTQ respondents believe it is currently illegal to ban physically qualified transgender people from serving in the U.S. military.
• 59% of non-LGBTQ respondents and 50% of LGBTQ respondents believe it is currently illegal to deny transgender people the right to use the restroom that aligns with their gender identity.

Although there are no comprehensive federal protections for LGBTQ people in any of these situations, the majority of non-LGBTQ Americans believe that these discriminatory situations should be illegal.

• 91% of non-LGBTQ respondents believe it should be illegal to evict someone from housing because they are LGBTQ.
• 90% of non-LGBTQ respondents believe it should be illegal to turn individuals away from a restaurant/other public place of business because they are LGBTQ.
• 89% of non-LGBTQ respondents believe it should be illegal to deny renting or selling housing to someone because they are LGBTQ.
• 86% of non-LGBTQ respondents believe it should be illegal to deny employment benefits (pension or health insurance coverage) to an employee’s same-sex partner.
• 73% of non-LGBTQ respondents believe it should be illegal to ban physically qualified transgender people from serving in the U.S. military.
• 61% of non-LGBTQ respondents believe it should be illegal to deny transgender people the right to use the restroom that aligns with their gender identity.

As in previous years, respondents were also asked about their comfortability with LGBTQ people across seven different scenarios: learning a family member is LGBTQ, learning their doctor is LGBTQ, having LGBTQ members at their place of worship, seeing a same-sex couple holding hands, seeing a gay/lesbian co-worker’s wedding picture, having their child placed in a class with a LGBTQ teacher, and learning their child has a lesson on LGBTQ history in school.

This year, GLAAD included the letter ‘Q,’ which stands for queer, to questions about comfortability with and understanding of ‘LGBTQ’ people.

The study found that non-LGBTQ people are most comfortable with having LGBTQ members at their place of worship or seeing a gay or lesbian co-worker’s wedding picture, while they are the least comfortable with learning their child has a lesson on LGBTQ history in school.

• 26% of non-LGBTQ respondents said that they are or would be ‘very’ or ‘somewhat’ uncomfortable having LGBTQ members at their place of worship. 
• 26% of non-LGBTQ respondents said that they are or would be ‘very’ or ‘somewhat’ uncomfortable seeing a gay or lesbian co-worker’s wedding picture. 
• 28% of non-LGBTQ respondents said that they are or would be ‘very’ or ‘somewhat’ uncomfortable learning their doctor is LGBTQ.
• 28% of non-LGBTQ respondents said they are or would be ‘very’ or ‘somewhat’ uncomfortable seeing a same-sex couple holding hands.
• 28% of non-LGBTQ respondents said that they are or would be ‘very’ or ‘somewhat’ uncomfortable having their child placed in a class with a LGBTQ teacher. 
• 30% of non-LGBTQ respondents said that they are or would be ‘very’ or ‘somewhat’ uncomfortable learning a family member is LGBTQ.
• 39% of non-LGBTQ respondents said that they are or would be ‘very’ or ‘somewhat’ uncomfortable learning their child has a lesson on LGBTQ history in school.

“The findings from this year’s Accelerating Acceptance Study highlight a dangerous reality: a significant majority of Americans, even within our own community, are not aware that LGBTQ people are not federally protected from discrimination in many areas of life,” said GLAAD President & CEO Sarah Kate Ellis. “Although we have witnessed landmark decisions for marriage equality and non-discrimination workplace protections in the last few years, the general public’s lack of understanding about the state of LGBTQ rights in America is largely due to the fact that our issues and lives are still being largely left out of the national conversation, especially during the 2020 election cycle when so much is at stake for LGBTQ people. With a large majority of Americans expressing that federal law should protect LGBTQ people from discrimination in areas of life in which they are currently not protected, it is more crucial than ever that we elect pro-equality candidates who will pass comprehensive legislation like the Equality Act and remove discriminatory measures imposed on LGBTQ people, like the transgender military ban.”

Despite landmark Supreme Court decisions for marriage equality and the expansion of non-discrimation employment protections, discrimination against LGBTQ people is still an alarming reality. There are significant gaps in protections for millions of employees of smaller businesses and religious institutions. Additionally, there is an ongoing lack of protections for all LGBTQ people in housing, health care, education and public accommodations across the country. Currently, 27 states have no non-discrimination protections for LGBTQ Americans.

During the Republican National Convention in August, GLAAD released an ad called “The Conversation,” which aired across broadcast and digital channels to show the personal consequences of the lack of protections for LGBTQ people against discrimination. The advertisement ends with a call for viewers to support the Equality Act, which extends comprehensive protections against LGBTQ discrimination including in housing, education, and public accommodations. Viewers are directed to glaad.org/EqualityAct to take action and learn more about the information in the ad. In May 2019, the House of Representatives passed The Equality Act, 236-173. It has not moved in the U.S. Senate, nor even come up for a vote. GLAAD’s ongoing research through the Trump Accountability Project tracks the Trump administration’s anti-LGBTQ rhetoric and policy. Since taking office in 2017, the Trump administration has attacked LGBTQ people over 180 times, including his opposition to The Equality Act.

In one of the administration’s most recent attacks, the U.S. Senate confirmed Amy Coney Barrett to the Supreme Court on Monday following President Trump’s nomination in September. Barrett is known for her anti-LGBTQ record, including time served as a trustee of a school that discriminated against LGBTQ families, stating views against marriage equality, and associations with extremist groups promoting dangerous policies against LGBTQ youth and work to undermine legal rights of LGBTQ people. Barrett testified, under oath, that she “has never” and “would not ever” discriminate on the basis of ‘sexual preference,’ a term used by groups that Barrett has worked for to inaccurately suggest sexual orientation is a choice, and therefore changeable by harmful conversion therapy that these groups advocate for. During the confirmation hearings, Barrett also refused to say that the marriage equality ruling under Obergefell was correctly decided, which has alarmed many LGBTQ and legal advocates.

GLAAD is currently engaged in a 100 Days of Action campaign to educate LGBTQ people about what’s at stake during the 2020 election and to increase LGBTQ turnout at the polls in November. GLAAD’s recently released ‘State of LGBTQ Voters’ poll found that LGBTQ voters are highly motivated and prepared to vote. The poll also found overwhelming support from LGBTQ voters for Vice President Joe Biden (76%) in a head-to-head matchup against President Trump (17%). Among the remaining likely LGBTQ voters, 5% planned to vote for another candidate and 2% remained unsure. Additionally, 53% of LGBTQ respondents from the poll reported experiencing anti-LGBTQ discrimination based on their sexual orientation or gender identity.

Until ABC’s Town Hall with Vice President Biden on October 15, LGBTQ issues have been largely absent from the 2020 election cycle. GLAAD has been reaching out to debate and town hall moderators to offer resources and data about where LGBTQ voters stand and the issues important to the community, and to advocate for LGBTQ inclusion in nationally televised Presidential candidate debates and town halls. GLAAD will continue to hold the candidates and the media accountable to the nearly 15 million LGBTQ Americans, whose very lives are at risk from policies inflicted by the Trump administration. GLAAD also released its Election Issues Guide for Journalists, which gives an overview of LGBTQ issues to ask any candidate running in this pivotal election.

Research Method

The Accelerating Acceptance Study was conducted online between November and December 2019, among a national sample of 2,506 U.S. adults, age 18 or over, sourced by Cint (a leading sample supplier and aggregator, with access to over 100 million panel members worldwide).

About Cint

Cint is the technology backbone of the world’s most successful insights companies. Cint’s platform automates sample fieldwork and operations so that companies can gather insights faster, more cost-effectively and at scale. Cint also has the world’s largest sample exchange that connects sample buyers to over 100 million engaged consumers across over 150 countries. More than 2,000 researchers, agencies and brands – including Kantar, Zappi, GfK and SurveyMonkey – use Cint to transform how they gather insights and be competitive in the market. Cint has a rapidly growing team across 14 global offices including London, New York, Stockholm, Los Angeles, Atlanta, Barcelona, Singapore, Tokyo and Sydney. (www.cint.com)