This piece was originally published by The 19th and appears here with permission.
According to a study published by Americans, Americans’ support for LGBTQ+ rights has declined after peaking in the early 1920s. modern Gallup poll.
Support for marriage equality has been steadily dwindling since it peaked at around highest level of all time to 71 percent in 2022 Now, 65 percent of Americans believe same-sex marriage should be valid. Broader support for LGBTQ+ people also continues to decline: 62 percent of Americans believe that gay or lesbian relationships are morally acceptable, down from 71 percent in 2022.
What has changed? Over the past five years, anti-LGBTQ+ rhetoric has become a staple of both state and federal policy as conservatives accuse queer and trans people of influencing children’s identities in schools, sports and hospitals. Politicians, including President Donald Trump, do it spent millions on campaign ads attacks transgender people while conservative groups and super PACs are running their own anti-LGBTQ+ ads. Nearly 50 organizations have started a modern campaign lobbying to end marriage equality, despite little or no interest from the Supreme Court revisiting in its landmark 2015 ruling.
The decline in support for LGBTQ+ rights comes largely from Republicans. Gallup found that in 2021 and 2022, 55 percent of Republicans supported same-sex marriage, but only 37 percent currently do so. In 2022, more than half of Republicans found same-sex relationships morally acceptable; 35% currently think so.
Other indicators of LGBTQ+ acceptance are also dwindling: A recent research of the Williams Institute, a think tank at UCLA, found that HIV stigma has increased in recent years despite significant advances in treatment and prevention. More adults than a few years ago feel fear and guilt towards people living with HIV, and a greater percentage of adults have at least one stigmatizing belief about people living with HIV. Conservatives were most stigmatized.
According to Gallup, Republicans’ views on same-sex couples are similar to what they held from 2005 to 2014 – essentially turning back the clock on LGBTQ+ acceptance.
In a statement, the Human Rights Campaign, the nation’s largest LGBTQ+ advocacy group, said opposition to the LGBTQ+ community has had only narrow success.
“Marriage equality is still supported by two-thirds of the American public, our federal protections are codified in the Respect for Marriage Act, and more than 800,000 same-sex couples across the country are in loving marriages. That’s why our pride, our visibility and our stories matter now more than ever. We will not let extremists define who we are and who we love,” said Jarred Keller, senior press secretary for the Human Rights Campaign.
These cultural changes also influence how Pride Month is recognized. This year, Republican governors in several states – including Indiana, Tennessee and Alabama – changed the name of June to a month celebrating heterosexual marriages and families, according to the Associated Press. reports. But these proclamations aren’t stopping local events: Pride is already in full swing in Birmingham, Nashville and Indianapolis. 🔥
