Nearly 1 in 5 young people say they are not right, the global study finds

Exposure to sexual and gender minorities

Worldwide, 42 percent of respondents to the survey said they have a gay or lesbian relative, friend or colleague, while 24 percent said they know someone who is bisexual; 10 percent said they knew someone who is transgender and 9 percent said they knew someone who is not binary, non-conforming to gender or gender fluid. The odds are higher in women than in men in all four groups, and there is a wide national variation. In Brazil, for example, 66 percent report having a gay or lesbian relative, friend or colleague, but in Japan and South Korea, the figure is only 7 percent.

When it comes to speaking on behalf of LGBTQ people, almost a third of all respondents worldwide said they had done so. Consistent with other findings, the poll found that General Z is far more open than the older generations, with 40 percent saying they have spoken out against anti-LGBTQ bias.

Eleven percent of respondents in all 27 countries reported having attended a same-sex marriage, from over 20 percent in Mexico and Argentina to 1 percent in Russia.

The survey asked about participation in pro-LGBTQ events, such as Pride marches. Globally, 13 percent of all respondents said they had attended such an event, including 54 percent of lesbian and gay respondents and 10 percent of heterosexuals. In Australia, more than 20 per cent of respondents reported having attended an event in support of LGBTQ rights, but in Russia, only 1 per cent attended.

“I’m not surprised that Russia stands out,” said Emil Edenborg, a senior associate professor at Stockholm University and an expert on Russia. Edenborg, who was not included in the poll, said the low level of participation in Pride events in Russia is partly due to the country’s so-called homosexual propaganda law.

“Pride parades have been banned in Russia since 2013, as are public expressions in favor of LGBT rights,” he said.

The law does not only affect activists, Edenborg said it also targets social media and any kind of public information, including sex education information.

“The most damaging effect of this law is the way it affects young people,” he said. “This has really imposed a harsh form of censorship on young people, especially limiting their ability to talk about their sexuality and gender identity.”

Same-sex marriage and parenting

The poll found that a global majority is in favor of same-sex marriage. In only two of the 27 countries surveyed, Russia and Malaysia, did researchers find the majority to contradict.

Edenborg said same-sex marriage has become a political point in Russia.

“Same-sex marriage and parents have been the main features of the state’s homophobic and stigmatizing discourse. These issues have been highlighted as the biggest threats,” he said.

Worldwide, women are more likely to support same-sex marriage than men. One’s level of education did not play any role in attitudes. Since Ipso’s latest global poll of same-sex marriages in 2013, there has been no decline in support in any country. There was an increase in support in most countries, with the US having the second highest increase, after Argentina, where support increased by 25 percent.

Latin American countries demonstrated relatively high levels of support for same-sex marriage, with 82 percent of respondents in Chile and 76 percent in Mexico in favor of same-sex marriage or some form of legal recognition of gay unions. Jordi Dez, a professor of political science at the University of Guelph in Ontario, said it was a common misconception that Latin America was equally conservative.

“You have much higher levels of tolerance in Latin America than in the US. There is no discussion about that,” he said.

He also noted the long history of gay and lesbian activism in Latin America. “The mobilization of gays and lesbians in Latin America is actually quite old. Visibility has been there, and these demands have been there for a long time,” he said.

Several Latin American countries Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Uruguay and Costa Rica have passed same-sex marriage laws. The laws, Dez said, have a “normalizing effect”, increasing support for policies and acceptance of homosexuality.

Support for equal parental rights is also high worldwide, with 61 percent of respondents saying same-sex couples should have the same rights as heterosexual couples. In only four countries did Russia, Malaysia, Poland and Peru have majorities opposed to adoption by same-sex couples.

Overall, the survey found that women are more supportive of parental rights for same-sex couples and that boomers are more likely to support adoption rights than General X. Canada and the Netherlands are found to have more support for rights same-sex parents, with 81 percent of Canadians and 83 percent of Dutch people in favor of equal rights for same-sex parents.

Visibility and equality

Worldwide, a majority support lesbians, gays and bisexuals’ being open about their sexual orientation (51 per cent in favor compared to 16 per cent in opposition). There is strong support for laws prohibiting discrimination in 55 percent worldwide, but support is more tacit for public affection, with 37 percent support and 27 percent opposition.

There is also global support for overtly lesbian, gay and bisexual athletes on sports teams. In the US, 53 percent of respondents support athletes abroad, similar to the global average of 50 percent.

The same level of support does not seem to exist for transgender athletes competing according to their gender identity. On average in all 27 countries, so many respondents support that they oppose the idea (32 percent compared to 32 percent).

“The US is one of the countries with the most opposition,” said Boyon of Ipsos, with only 27 per cent of U.S. respondents in favor.

In the U.S., state lawmakers have introduced a series of bills this year to ban transgender athletes from competing in school sports.

Obstacles and next steps for a global study

Boyon acknowledged that global polls have their limitations. In particular, he cited the difficulty in designing a study to adequately capture the diversity of people’s gender identifications.

“In designing the questionnaires, we realized that no matter what we do, we will miss people,” Boyon said. “We are aware of the challenges of using labels.”

Another issue is translation, Boyon said. “We did not use the word ‘queer’ in the survey because it does not actually translate into many languages.”

In this regard, the survey was conducted in English by US-based researchers and the United Kingdom. “This is a survey that was designed by Westerners,” Boyon said.

The poll does not claim to be a national representative in all counties. In countries where the internet is not so accessible, for example, the survey captures the thoughts of a relatively urban and digitally connected group.

Boyon said moving forward, he would like to consider whether Generation Z retains its gender and sexual openness.

“A big question about the trends we see among young people is whether the models we see in General Z will stay the same over time,” Boyon said, “or whether it simply reflects youth and over time they can have more defined identities. “

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