Health, Housing Top Issues for LGBTQ New Yorkers
City’s queer residents shed light on their opinions midway through tumultuous year
BY MATT TRACY
Healthcare, housing,
and hate crimes were
among the top issues
on the minds of LGBTQ
likely voters in New York City
in the months leading up to the
2020 general election, according
to a survey conducted by the New
Pride Agenda (NPA) and Columbia
University’s School of International
and Public Affairs.
Researchers gathered responses
via email from 1,263 individuals
— including 870 LGBTQ folks
— between June 17 and August
31 of this year in the midst of the
nationwide protest movement targeting
racial injustice and police
brutality. The survey touched on
LGBTQ issues, current events, the
coronavirus pandemic, and civic
participation.
A whopping 97 percent of LGBTQ
respondents said President Donald
Trump — who had yet to be unseated
by former Vice President Joe Biden
— had mounted a “poor” response to
the COVID-19 pandemic up to that
point, but they gave varying degrees
of better grades to New York-based
elected offi cials. Forty-fi ve percent
of queer respondents said Mayor
Bill de Blasio’s response was “only
fair,” while 43 percent said Governor
Andrew Cuomo had an “excellent”
response to the pandemic as of the
summertime.
Among the top LGBTQ issues,
39 percent of queer respondents
said hate crimes ranked number
one, followed by 26 percent who
said general healthcare was the
most pressing queer issue and 24
percent who said homelessness
topped the list.
When asked specifi cally about
New York City, 41 percent of LGBTQ
respondents listed affordable
housing as the top issue, while
31 percent said public health was
the most important issue in the
city and 19 percent said the same
for police misconduct. Twenty-fi ve
percent of respondents said the
second-most important issue was
homelessness, followed by affordable
housing, which was the second
POLITICS
LGBTQ New Yorkers were surveyed during a vibrant summertime protest movement that was highlighted by events such as The Queer Liberation March for
Black Lives and Against Police Brutality in June.
most important issue for 22
percent of people. Nineteen percent
said police misconduct was the
second most pressing concern.
Not surprisingly, 45 percent of
LGBTQ respondents said public
health was the most important issue
in the nation, compared to 26
percent who said race relations
was the top issue and 22 percent
who said income inequality ranked
as the biggest nationwide issue.
The data also offered some insight
into the preferred forms of civic engagement
for LGBTQ New Yorkers.
More than 44 percent of respondents
said they preferred to contact
their elected offi cials, while slightly
over a third said they donated to
advocacy groups and just under a
quarter said they attended rallies.
“It’s a new day. The fi ndings of
this New Pride Agenda survey
should make all electeds stand up
and listen,” Cecilia Gentili, co-chair
of NPA’s board, said in a written
statement. “The LGBTQ+ community
is paying attention and having
their voices heard at the polls. Addressing
their concerns and needs
must be at the top of all electeds’
policy agendas.”
Ahmed Mohamed, an organizer
for NPA’s Civic Engagement and
Public Education Project, said in
a written statement that people of
color “will no longer be left behind.
“Survey respondents demand
racial justice, police reform, and
more attention and action to reduce
hate crimes,” Mohamed said.
“New Pride Agenda will work hard
to advocate for the changes this
community demands.”
There are several important factors
to consider when evaluating
the results of the survey. The timing
of the research — conducted
before the election and before the
latest developments in the coronavirus
crisis — is noteworthy
because the responses may not
necessarily refl ect the current perspectives
of voters who have adjusted
their priorities following last
month’s election.
Furthermore, the LGBTQ respondents’
demographic profi le did
not track that of New York City’s
overall population. Just 27.4 percent
of LGBTQ respondents were
female, despite females making
up 52.7 percent of the estimated
population in the city, according to
the Census. And while the Census
estimates that 32 percent of New
York City residents are non-Hispanic
white and 24.3 percent are
Black, 75 percent of respondents
were white, 10 percent were Black,
DONNA ACETO
3.5 percent were Asian, and 11.4
percent were listed as “other.”
About six percent of LGBTQ respondents
were non-binary, 2.9
percent were transgender, 3.2 percent
were gender non-conforming,
and 1.8 percent were classifi ed as
“other.”
NPA noted that the survey was
not intended to be a random sampling
of the overall LGBTQ population,
but rather a “purposive sampling”
meant to weigh the views
of likely voters based on those
currently affi liated with leading
community-based organizations.
Participants were recruited using
mailing lists from 12 CBOs in
addition to NPA compared, for the
fi rst time, to city voter lists.
Ester Fuchs, author of the survey
and a professor of international
and public affairs at Columbia, in
a written statement, said, “For any
organized group, it’s important that
elected offi cials understand and
know what you care about. And
this is the fi rst time that NYC voter
lists were matched with LGBTQ+
identifi ed citizens, so the data base
now held by NPA, is a gold mind! We
hope to collaborate on writing a report
on this ground breaking survey
in the coming months, and, expand
our survey work statewide.”
GayCityNews.com | December 17 - December 30, 2020 5
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