Jacksonville Second-Top Metro for Same-Sex Couples with Children

[duvaldude08]

Right! First we need to update our Human Rights Ordinance! That would be the first step. LOL

[Jimmy]

Yes, we've become conspicuous in our lack of inclusion in our Human Rights Ordinance.  I mean, Volusia county just surpassed us.

Daytona Beach is more inclusive and welcoming than Jacksonville.  This fall we have to address that.  It would be great to have the support of everyone here, and of MetroJacksonville, as we work on it.  Obviously we're expecting some vocal opposition from some segments of the community.  But luckily big business is onboard.  We'd like to have support from the Chamber, DVI, MetroJacksonville, all the big community players.

[buckethead]

Even our gays are breeders.

It's how we do it in the south!

[duvaldude08]

Even our gays are breeders.

It's how we do it in the south!

Yess! Bisexuals are always breeding. Male and Female 

[RMHoward]

With the passage of the New York Marriage Equality Act, the number of gay couples in the U.S. who are eligible to marry has now doubled.  Approximately 9 million Americans are lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender (LGBT) -- slightly less than four percent of the population, according a recent study by Gary Gates of UCLA's Williams Institute. Approximately half of lesbians and gay men are members of same-sex couples, including an estimated 160,000 who are married, according to Gates' research. Nearly one in five same-sex couple households are raising children, compared to about 45 percent of heterosexual couple households, according to figures from the American Community Survey (ACS).

The list below, drawn from Gates' analysis of data from the ACS, shows the 15 metros that have the largest percentage of same-sex couples raising children under 18 years of age. The densest concentrations of such families are not necessarily in the places where you'd expect to find them. Especially surprising are the metros that don't make the cut -- like San Francisco and New York.




http://www.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2011/06/top-metros-for-same-sex-couples-with-children/241113/?&utm_content=Google+Reader

Yet another list Jacksonville should not be proud to be near the top of.

Quite the contrary, although Im sure there are a few old bigots who feel otherwise.


Quite the contrary Stevie.  Believing in man-woman unions raising children does not make you a bigot, it places you in agreement with the vast majority of Americans.  This is similar to your slanted belief that when anyone disagrees with Obama, he must be a racist.  You are predictably quick to call folks who disagree with you and your beliefs names like bigot, racist, etc.  Its what you and your kind do.

[Jimmy]

I don't think opposing marriage equality makes you bigot.  But it does put you in the minority, at least as far as the latest opinion polls go.  Opposition to such marriages fall off at younger ages.  Demographics are destiny = marriage equality will be a reality within the next decade or two, tops, throughout the whole United States.

[brainstormer]

RM, what's your view on single parents raising kids?

[ubben]

Yeah, it's great to see the tide turning so resoundingly. In just a few decades, this country has taken enormous steps towards real equality. Naturally there are bitter holdouts who resent losing their battle to discriminate--as seen by the small-minded posts that pop up here from time to time. But their temper tantrums seem almost lost in all the good news. We are closer than ever to living in a country where 'all men are created equal.' There's work to do to be sure, but there's no turning back now. High Fives all around to the men and women on Metrojax who believe in freedom and equality!

[PeeJayEss]

Its what you and your kind do.

Stereotyping immediately after chastising someone for stereotyping is called hypocrisy. That and your little factoid on the "vast majority of Americans" is...not an overstatement...what's the word? A falsehood.

[Tacachale]

Religious conservatives are going to have to get used to being in the minority on this one.

As others have said, more Americans are for gay marriage than are against it. This finding was confirmed by at least four independent polls so far this year. The proportion has grown every year; don't expect it to get any smaller in the future.

http://pollingreport.com/civil.htm

Gay marriage is currently legal in six states and DC. Twelve more have some level of recognition and benefits for same-sex unions (including several that have civil unions that have the same rights). Of course many states have banned gay marriage, and some, including Florida, have banned all kinds of same-sex unions. But due to the various constitutional issues this brings up, don't expect it to last forever before the Supreme Court takes it up. And many will probably be repealed by state legislatures and referendums before that.

Before long we're going to be living in a country where gay unions are both legal and widely accepted by an easy majority of the public. It will be interesting to see how religious conservatives are going to deal with this.

[simms3]

Well, it is a formal study, and it does discuss those things. The great thing about it is that it challenges a lot of stereotypes about gay people and where they live (including the stereotypes you mention). It challenges the idea that gays are mostly white, well-to-do, and live mostly in "gay cities" in the Northeast or California.

I have never heard of these notions that the gay community is wealthy and white.  It's no secret that the AA community is less than friendly toward their own people if they are gay, but the big cities with large gay populations have extremely diverse gay scenes.  Don't get up to Atlanta or DC much, eh?  Also well to do?  Ironically for not raising kids there are a lot of less than well to do gay guys.  The only cities where I have heard of or met extremely wealthy gay men (who all know each other and travel with each other btw) are Miami/So FL, Atlanta to a smaller extent, New York, Chicago, and LA.  And believe it not the only major gay cities in the NE are New York, Philly, and DC.  Of course smaller coastal towns are very gay friendly and so is Providence, RI, but Boston and other cities aren't big with the gays.

And here in Atlanta which is still one of the largest gay cities (but shrinking), a lot of guys are moving to Chicago, DC, or New York.  I know only one guy who wants to downsize to Birmingham or Charleston, but the traditionally gay cities are growing their gay populations (all except for Atlanta I guess ) and the smaller cities have always exported their gay guys to the large gay cities.  There is no misunderstood notion that smaller cities don't have huge gay populations because they don't.  When you visit a large area and see that 40% of the people (guys and girls...though guys are more city and girls are more suburban) are gay, then you'll realize that you are in a real gay ghetto.  There are parts of Midtown Atlanta (like whole high rise buildings and housing sections where the population is 70-80% gay).  Gay restaurants, gay coffee shops, gay bars, gay clubs, gay spas, gay gyms, gay realties, gay doctors (my doctor that I see has a practice with 5 other doctors, including a woman, and they are all gay), gay everything.  When Jacksonville has a Pride attended by at least 100,000 people and the mayor and city council participate, then you can say a smaller city like Jacksonville has a large gay presence and embraces gay culture (or at least that side of it heh).

[finehoe]

big·ot [big-uht] 
â€"noun
a person who is intolerant of any differing creed, belief, or opinion.

Decide for yourselves if the shoe fits.

[buckethead]

big·ot [big-uht] 
â€"noun
a person who is intolerant of any differing creed, belief, or opinion.

Decide for yourselves if the shoe fits.

That's the definition for "progressive"!

Religious conservatives are going to have to get used to being in the minority on this one.

Not sure if them's the facts, Ma'am.

I also don't think it is relevant whether the majority of people believes in equal protection under the law.

It would be nice to get more people on board with that particular notion, however.

[PeeJayEss]

That's the definition for "progressive"!

And that^ is the definition of idiotic.

This is the definition of progressive: favoring or advocating progress,  change, improvement, or reform, as opposed to wishing to maintain things as they are, especially in political matters

Conservative, by definition: disposed to preserve existing conditions, institutions, etc., or to restore traditional ones, and to limit change

One embraces change and difference, one does not. You simply have it backwards. Variety is the spice of life.

[wsansewjs]

I don't think opposing marriage equality makes you bigot.  But it does put you in the minority, at least as far as the latest opinion polls go.  Opposition to such marriages fall off at younger ages.  Demographics are destiny = marriage equality will be a reality within the next decade or two, tops, throughout the whole United States.

Because my generation and the younger generations before that grew up with our gay friends because we understand and love them.

This is the key to the social changes lies in the future generation.

-Josh