NEW YORK CITY - As the number of Latinos and Hispanics in the U.S. grows, so does the variety of sexuality demographics. In fact, Hispanics are one of the largest populations with people who identify as part of the LGBTQ community, a new survey shows.
The study was conducted by the Public Religion Research Institute, or PRRI, throughout 2023. The organization surveyed 22,000 adults in order to form their larger body of work, the American Values Atlas, which seeks to provide a detailed profile of the demographic, religious and political characteristics of LGBTQ Americans.
Although the survey mostly sought out to analyze and depict the relationship between religion and sexuality across all 50 states, it also provided key insights into the landscape of the LGBT community in America.
Overall, one in ten Americans (10%) identified as part of the LGBTQ community, according to the survey, whose list included gays, lesbians, bisexuals, transgender, nonbinary or "something else."
From this number, one in five (20%) are Hispanic, which is the second demographic in this representation and slightly higher than the demographic's overall proportion of the U.S. population (almost 19% by 2020).
Meanwhile, 12% of Hispanic Americans identify as members of these communities. The largest group are white Americans, with 59%. Following Hispanics are Black Americans (11%), Asian Americans or Pacific Islanders (5%), multiracial (3%) and another racial identity.
Hispanics have seen one of the largest growths among all demographics. Just two years ago, Gallup reported that 11% of Hispanics identified as members of the LGBT community in 2021. This means that these identifications from Hispanics have become more common, and almost doubling in just three years.
PRRI also notes that, in general, LGBTQ Americans show a very young and diverse population. According to the institute, Americans are overrepresented among the youngest generations, Democrats, and liberals, while reflecting the geographic and racial diversity of the general population.
But despite these numbers, LGBTQ Americans face legislative challenges in various Republican-led states, Axios reports.
In Florida, for instance, a bill commonly known as "Don't Say Gay" tried to ban classroom instruction on sexual orientation and gender identity from kindergarten through 3rd grade in 2022. Just this week, however, a settlement would now allow students and teachers to discuss these topics, provided it's not part of instruction.
Similarly, in Texas, Governor Greg Abbott has previously ordered state agencies to investigate parents for child abuse if they seek gender-affirming care for their children.
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