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There's absolutely no reliable statistics available that show the LGBT population of any place in the U.S. It's very hard to measure. Therefore, the best statistic IMO is simply the total population of a city, multiplied by say, 5%. In conclusion, NYC has the highest number of LGBT residents of any city in the nation. Bottom line....the more populated an area, the more LGBT people there are. The less populated an area, the less LGBT people there are. There may be a few exceptions or inconsistencies, but in general, it really is that simple.
If you're gay in, say, Scranton, PA, you can easily move to any of the big cities in the Bos-Wash corridor. If you're gay in Minot, ND, you have far fewer nearby options.
Therefore, you get a higher concentration of LGBT people in big cities surrounded by conservative country: Minneapolis, Dallas, Houston, Atlanta, Salt Lake City, etcetera.
Also, despite being the same size, Spokane's LGBT community seems more organized and prominent than that in Syracuse; Sacramento's is more prominent than that in Cincinnati; Tucson's is more prominent than that in Fresno.
Last edited by Dawn.Davenport; 06-15-2014 at 06:24 PM..
If you're gay in, say, Scranton, PA, you can easily move to any of the big cities in the Bos-Wash corridor. If you're gay in Minot, ND, you have far fewer nearby options.
Therefore, you get a higher concentration of LGBT people in big cities surrounded by conservative country: Minneapolis, Dallas, Houston, Atlanta, Salt Lake City, etcetera.
Also, despite being the same size, Spokane's LGBT community seems more organized and prominent than that in Syracuse; Sacramento's is more prominent than that in Cincinnati; Tucson's is more prominent than that in Fresno.
Do you have any statistics or facts to support this? Or is this just based off of your own anecdotal evidence?
Location: northern Vermont - previously NM, WA, & MA
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Quote:
Originally Posted by nep321
Do you have any statistics or facts to support this? Or is this just based off of your own anecdotal evidence?
You can press for statistical cold hard facts and numbers as much as you want but numbers, polls, and facts are certainly not going to make it relatable to anyone. As someone who has lived in New England and other parts of the country I believe one reason why Boston may not rank as high in the minds of some in rankings for LGBT communities is because it's not needed as much where as larger cities that function more like islands in a conservative red sea are much different. New England states harbor a progressive attitude in general all over and it doesn't matter if it is a big city in Massachusetts, small town in Vermont, or a suburb in Connecticut.
As a gay man myself I'd feel fairly comfortable settling just about anywhere in any one of the six New England states, and not so much in many other parts of the country. Somebody in Georgia might feel a much stronger to draw to Atlanta or one in Utah may feel a strong pull to Salt Lake City due to lack of other options within the state, thus making a higher profile and magnetic draw for gays where it is not as much of a needed draw for Boston because its simply not as necessary to migrate to the city to be openly gay or accepted. Nonetheless Boston has a large gay community anyways, but it's a different atmosphere and for different reasons than somewhere like Atlanta or Salt Lake City.
Last edited by Champ le monstre du lac; 06-15-2014 at 10:37 PM..
*Included in the top tier by sheer numbers only. Per capita, these two cities are not really that impressive.
Second Tier
Atlanta
Washington DC
Minneapolis
Dallas
Houston
Third Tier
Philly
Miami
Orlando
Boston
Columbus
Fourth Tier
Portland, OR
Salt Lake City
Tampa
Baltimore
Denver
San Diego
Sacramento
New Orleans
Phoenix
Austin
Fifth Tier
Providence
Las Vegas
Milwaukee
Cleveland
St. Louis
Rochester, NY
Pittsburgh
Charlotte
Kansas City
As a gay male who also travels and has lived in some of the cities mentioned I disagree with your list which seems based more on the "hey, look at us we're gay" criteria. Cities like NYC, LA, DC, Boston and Philly feature less of that because the LGBT community is largely integrated with the general population and lacking in the "gayborhoods" that exist in some cities (or historically in these particular cities), which doesn't give the visual impression at first glance of a large LGBT presence/influence. In other words I think you're using 1980s-1990s criteria in 2014, which isn't accurate for where we are now in terms of evolution.
Yeah, I mean that's true about New England. The gays are scattered all over the place, even in the country, because it's liberal almost everywhere -- urban or rural, which is great!
Not THE COUNTRY? Wow, that's practically unheard of.
Quote:
Originally Posted by CowsAndBeer
The country, damn.
Quote:
Originally Posted by CowsAndBeer
Even in the country. Wow.
Why do you keep saying this? Is it a reference to something?
At first I assumed you were responding to nep saying "The gays are scattered all over the place, even in the country", and being sarcastic as of course there are gay people everywhere. But the LGBT community is less accepted in the country, outside of some areas like New England and the Upper Midwest, so I think their point was valid. In some parts of the country LGBT people are more pressured to move to cities than others.
But then you said it a third time, 2 days later, and now I am really confused. Explain, please?
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