A study on the safety of LGBT+ people in every US state was carried out by Safe Home, a company that specializes in home security and personal protection. They collected information from more than a dozen sources, including the US Census, UCLA School of Law, and the FBI. Safe Home evaluated every state in terms of LGBT+ community safety based on their research.
The list was created by Safe Home through an analysis of each state’s LGBT+ rights situation, accounting for factors like the frequency of hate crimes, the degree of support for queer families, the level of protection for LGBT+ workers, and the accessibility of public spaces for the LGBT+ community.
Examining Legal Vulnerabilities: A State-by-State Analysis of LGBT+ Protections in the United States
Studies show that most US states (57%) do not provide the LGBT+ community with adequate legal protection. With a score of -78 out of 100, North Dakota has the lowest level of safety for this neighbourhood among all states.
No legal safeguards exist in North Dakota to protect LGBT+ people from discrimination in the workplace due to their gender identity or sexual orientation, nor are there any public accommodations that provide this kind of protection. Laws against bullying and adoption do not adequately address the problems LGBT people in the state confront.
House Bill 1503, which allows student organizations in colleges and universities to discriminate against LGBT+ students, was just signed into law by Governor Doug Burgum of North Dakota.
Several states, including South Dakota, Kansas, Georgia, Mississippi, Kentucky, and Montana, were found to be the most risky by researchers.
Safest Havens: A Deep Dive into LGBT+ Protections in California and Vermont
California and Vermont have both scored a perfect 100 on the safety index, making them the safest states for LGBT+ people. Second parent adoption is an option available to married and single same-sex couples in California. Furthermore, both the public and private sectors protect LGBT employees from discrimination. Conversely, Vermont guarantees the LGBT+ community complete safeguards in the healthcare system.
It is illegal to discriminate in healthcare on the basis of gender identity and sexual orientation, and health insurance cannot exclude transgender individuals. The state also has a trans youth clinic that offers vital assistance and services to the local community.
Despite having robust protections for their LGBT+ residents, Vermont and California saw a greater rate of hate crimes than the national average. This shows that there is always a great deal of space for improvement, even in the safest states.
Nine additional states, including California, were included in the top 10. Maryland, Washington, Illinois, Oregon, Massachusetts, New York, and Rhode Island are some of these states.
Researchers have found a sizable disparity in how LGBT+ citizens are treated in various US jurisdictions. Regardless of how well a state does in the rankings, they think there is always room for improvement when it comes to offering the LGBT+ community a safe place to live.