I read an article today in the Fargo Forum (I live across the river from Fargo, ND, in Moorhead, MN). It said that a Gallup Poll reported that 1.7% of North Dakotans self-identify as LGBT, which means, of the 50 states (plus D.C.) North Dakota has the smallest percentage of gays. ND is the least gay state. Or deepest in the closet.
North Dakota just elected its first openly-gay member of the state House of Representatives in 2012. His name is Joshua Boschee. He represents a district in Fargo. He recently proposed a law that would make it illegal for employers or landlords to discriminate against LGBT employees or renters. Needless to say, the law did not pass. So it remains legal (or at least not illegal) to discriminate against gay people in ND. More details under the orange lutefisk.
Here’s a link to the Forum article: Gallup: North Dakota has lowest percentage of gays in the U.S.. (Note: The Forum website might ask you to sign up and in a few days or weeks, they’ll probably put the article behind a paywall). Here’s the link to the Gallup poll: LGBT Percentage Highest in D.C., Lowest in North Dakota.
From the Forum article:
A North Dakota State University political science professor said she doesn’t doubt that North Dakota is home to a smaller proportion of LGBT residents than other states, but she thinks the specific percentage is likely an undercount.
“I thought (the study) was interesting and a good basis for discussion, but I am somewhat skeptical that the (LGBT) population of North Dakota is only 1.7 percent,” Kjersten Nelson said.
Dave Lanpher, chairman of the Fargo Human Relations Commission, is also skeptical of that number, saying that people who live in smaller, rural North Dakota towns might be less likely to be honest about their sexual orientation.
“Anytime you live in a smaller community and are a minority, that’s more difficult for you,” he said.
Nelson said North Dakota’s survey results could show that the state isn’t an LGBT-friendly environment. She said people here may not be comfortable coming out as LGBT, or could be relocating to states that are more accepting.
So here are a few thoughts I had:
Probably there are many people in the closet in ND (because the state doesn’t protect LGBT people from discrimination and also, the neighbors would talk). So when a Gallup pollster calls you, you say you’re not gay. Maybe your brother or some other relative is in the room. Or you’re religious and you’re ashamed. Or you think that it might not really be a poll, but somebody playing a prank on you. Whatever.
Even if 1.7% is a legitimate number, think about a North Dakota town with 200 people. So 1.7% is 3.4 people plus or minus. What if you’re 20 years old and the only other gay people in town are a gay man who’s 40 and a lesbian who’s 60? You’re gonna want to go to a big city and find other people like you. So you’ll move to Fargo or to another bigger city, like Minneapolis or Chicago or Seattle or whatever. Places that have gay bars. Or at least places that have legal protections for gay people. Maybe there are gay kids in North Dakota, but they move away when they grow up.
What blows my mind about the Gallup Poll is that South Dakota shows up as the seventh gayest state. WTF? The only places that have a higher percentage of LGBTs than South Dakota are DC, HI, VT, OR, ME, and RI. SD is tied with MA for seventh place at 4.4% How did North Dakota get 51st (least gay) but South Dakota is number seven on the list? South Dakota has a higher percentage of people out of the closet than California does. Are people in SD just more honest?
SD is higher on the list than all of its neighbors: ND, MT, WY, NE, IA (which has marriage equality), and MN (which I think will have marriage equality this year or next). Why are there so many South Dakotans saying they’re gay? It’s a puzzlement.
I thought this might spark some discussion. Any comments?