American Attitudes Toward Homosexuality Continue to Become More Tolerant
New Gallup Poll Shows Continuation of Slow, But Steady, Liberalization
of Attitudes
Gallup News Service, June 4, 2001
Poll Releases
By Frank Newport
Key Point Summary
PRINCETON, NJ — A new Gallup poll reveals a
continuation of a gradual, but to some degree steady, increase in the
liberalization of American public opinion about homosexuality.
Americans still exhibit ambivalence about the overall acceptability of
homosexuality in American society today, and substantial numbers of Americans
continue to say that homosexual relations should be neither acceptable nor
legal. But there have been changes in these attitudes over time.
Here are the key points from Gallup’s most recent poll on the topic,
conducted in mid-May:
Gallup has recorded a gradual increase in adherence to the belief that
homosexuality is an acceptable alternative lifestyle. Agreement with this
proposition has risen from 38% in 1992 to 52% today.
There has also been a shift in attitudes about the legality of
homosexuality, with a majority of Americans — 54% — now saying that
"homosexual relations between consenting adults" should be legal,
compared to 43% who felt this way in 1977.
One of the more significant changes in American public opinion on gay and
lesbian issues has been the increase in the perception that homosexuality is
genetic — something a person is born with — as opposed to being due to
other factors such as upbringing and environment. For the first time in 24
years, as many people in Gallup’s most recent poll say homosexuality is
genetic as say it is environmental. This represents a major shift from 1977,
when environment was seen as the more prevalent factor by more than a
four-to-one ratio.
In terms of specific issues, a majority of Americans remain opposed to the
extension of marriage benefits to gay and lesbian partners joined in civil
unions.
About four out of 10 Americans think that gays and lesbians should not be
allowed to work as members of the clergy or as elementary school teachers.
However, only minorities of Americans are uncomfortable with gays and lesbians
having a number of other professions and jobs tested in the research.
Over 80% of Americans accept the idea of including homosexuals under the
protection of equal opportunity provisions in the workplace.
Findings in Detail
Basic Issues: Should Homosexuality be Legal?
Gallup first asked about the legality of homosexuality in 1977, with a
basic question worded as follows: "Do you think homosexual relations
between consenting adults should or should not be legal?" At that point,
Americans were evenly divided on the issue: 43% said yes, 43% said no and 14%
weren’t sure.
Gallup has asked the question numerous times since then, and at the last
asking in the May 2001 poll, a majority — for the first time — agreed with
the "legal" perspective. Fifty-four percent of those interviewed
said that homosexual relations should be legal, 42% not legal, with 4% unsure.
The percentage saying that homosexual relations should be legal dropped to as
low as 32% in 1986, perhaps due to either the conservative environment ushered
in by the Reagan administration, or the beginning of widespread publicity
surrounding AIDS and its prevalence in the homosexual community.
Do you think homosexual relations between consenting adults should or
should not be legal?
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