Some states have already received their reports from the 2000 Census. (Nationwide statistics are scheduled to be available in late August.) States are finding significant jumps in households that report same-sex partnerships compared to estimates a decade ago.

Some examples:

Delaware: From an estimated 212 households in 1990 to 1,868 in 2000 (Source: Associated Press, 6/13/2001)

Kansas: 3,973 households in 2000 — more than 500 per cent increase from 1999 (Lawrence Journal-World, 6/27/2001)

Nebraska: From 455 to 2,332 in 2000 (Omaha World Herald, 6/20/2001)

New York: From an estimated 13,748 in 1990 to 46,490 in 2000 (Albany Times-Union, 6/27/2001)

Ohio: 18,937 in 2000 — a 400 per cent increase (Plain Dealer, 6/27/2001)

Vermont: From 370 households in 1990 to 1,933 in 2000 (AP, 6/13/2001)

How accurate are these numbers? Analysis of these statistics must also consider several important factors. First, the census did NOT ask about sexual orientation. Checking off “unmarried partners” on the form was the only option that LGBT people had as a means to be counted. Among the statistically invisible are:

* Single people

* Married/closeted gay people

* Bisexual people married to or living with someone of the opposite sex

* Same-sex partners/couples who do not live together

* Transgender people in legal opposite sex marriages

Second, the 1990 statistics make for a flimsy comparison, since shifts in cultural acceptance over the past decade mean that some people feel more comfortable being counted as gay. Ten years ago, the same couples may have reported a “partner” as a “roommate” instead. What’s more, the data in 1990 are only estimates based on a sampling.

It’s important to remember that the statistics only represent exactly what they are: statistics reflecting unmarried same-sex couples who choose to identify themselves as domestic partners. There are still plenty of people who do not feel safe reporting their legally unprotected sexual orientation to the government — particularly LGBT citizens who live in one of the 38 states where they can still be fired based on sexual orientation.

Despite its flaws, the 2000 census will contribute to making LGBT people and their families more visible. At the very least, communities with homophobic policies will be less able to justify political and legal inequities by saying that there are no gay people in their town/city/county/state.

Trackback URI | Comments RSS