Quick Story
A newly published survey suggests that 40% of straight millennials think homosexuality is damaging to society’s moral values.
Long Story
Believe it or not, there’s a brand-new survey that has been released suggesting a large swath (40%) of millennials who identify as “straight” think homosexuality is eroding society’s moral values.
The research was conducted by Cathy Cohen and her associates at GenForward who sampled 1,750 young adults ages 18-34 across the United States.
The results varied greatly between different groups surveyed. 45% of African American respondents said that homosexuality was deteriorating society’s moral values, compared to 42% of Latinx people, 34% of white people and 28% of Asian Americans.
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The troubling numbers in sharp contrast with other surveys that have shown strong support among millennials for LGBT+ rights.
Inside the data, the metrics show that of the 1,750 millennials surveyed, the majority were concerned by incidences of bullying and hate crimes against LGBT+ people. The study also found strong support for reducing the incidences of both.
Other data-points revealed:
- Approximately 14% of Millennials identify as LGBTQ. Larger percentages of Latinx Millennials (22%) identify as LGBTQ compared with African Americans (14%), whites (13%), and Asian Americans (9%).
- LGBT Linked Fate: Millennials who identify as LGBT, independent of race and ethnic group, express higher levels of group solidarity, or linked fate, with other LGBT people compared to the linked fate Millennials who identify as straight/heterosexual feel toward other straight/heterosexual young adults.
- Know LGBT. Large majorities of Millennials across race/ethnicity know someone who is gay or lesbian. Fewer, though still substantial, know someone who is transgender. Whites are the group most likely to know a transgender person (36%) compared to other racial/ethnic groups (~22%).
Dr Cathy Cohen discussed the surprising results in an op-ed for Advocate.
In the piece, she notes that the question on morality was the only area in the survey that the word “homosexuality” was used, and suggests that the word may be seen as “bad” or “deviant” by some.
“It is also possible that for millennials “homosexuality” may mean something quite different than the more familiar ‘LGBTQ’,” she said. “This is a contradiction millennials (and we) will have to work out over time.”
“It should remind us of all the work that remains to be done and how little we should take for granted when it comes to educating young people about the reality of LGBTQ lives, especially the lives of young queers of colour,” she added.
h/t: Pink News
