Las Vegas targeting LGBT tourism dollars

Very interesting article in Vegas Inc. Magazine about marketing Las Vegas to the LGBT tourism market.

According to the article, gay and lesbian tourists are becoming more and more savvy about where to spend their dollars.

And with information like the HRC's Equality Index available via the internet on any smart phone, gay and lesbian tourists are doing their homework in deciding what Las Vegas destinations will get their business.

They can’t legally marry here. Many don’t feel comfortable walking hand-in-hand down the alcohol - powered Las Vegas Strip on a busy evening. But they have spending power — lots of it — and with the liberalization of attitudes toward gay individuals, Las Vegas travel marketers have become increasingly aggressive and nuanced in their outreach to the segment.

It’s no longer enough for marketers to simply slap a politically correct multi-colored rainbow flag on print and video ads while their own companies discriminate against their LGBT employees, denying them pay and benefits on a par with their straight counterparts.

“We have options. We don’t have to spend our money where we’re mistreated,” said David, a 45-year-old researcher from the Midwest, who despite the evolving era of enlightenment on gay issues, was too skittish to share his last name. “Zero is an embarrassing score for any company in today’s business world. Why would I spend my money with someone who doesn’t respect who I am?”

Read more at Vegas Inc Magazine.

Americans estimate 25% of Americans are gay

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U.S. adults, on average, estimate that 25% of Americans are gay or lesbian. More specifically, over half of Americans (52%) estimate that at least one in five Americans are gay or lesbian, including 35% who estimate that more than one in four are. Thirty percent put the figure at less than 15%.

Americans with lower incomes and less education give the highest estimates, on average, of the U.S. gay and lesbian population, and far higher estimates than those with higher incomes and more education. Americans aged 18 to 29 give a higher average estimate than older Americans, and women give a far higher average estimate than men.

Democrats, liberals, and those who say they are socially liberal are also more likely to give higher estimates than those at the other end of the spectrum. However, the differences by political or ideological leanings are in most cases not as wide as those seen by demographic group.

Read more from Gallup

NV legislature passes important anti-discrimination bills

(via HRC) Yesterday, members of the Nevada State Assembly took a final vote on AB 211, a bill codifying prohibitions against discrimination in employment on the basis of gender identity or expression. The bill had already passed in the State Senate. The bill now moves to the desk of Governor Brian Sandoval for his consideration.

If signed into law, Nevada would become the 14th U.S. state, along with the District of Columbia, to provide protections based on gender identity or expression.

“The Nevada legislature has rightly recognized that everyone should be treated equally in the workplace, and Governor Sandoval should sign this bipartisan measure into law,” said HRC President Joe Solmonese. “Being free from discrimination based on gender identity or expression, judged solely on your merits and quality of work, is the most common-sense approach to employment policies.”

“Today is a great day for all residents of Nevada,” said Josh Miller, a member of the HRC Board of Directors from Nevada. “Providing employment protections based on gender identity or expression is a victory for civil rights, and we urge Gov. Sandoval to sign this legislation. The people of our state should be judged on the quality of work they do and not on who they are.”

In other Nevada news, the Senate has approved SB 331 and 368, bills that expand the state’s anti-discrimination laws in the areas of public accommodations and housing, respectively. SB 331 protects against discrimination in public accommodations on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity, while SB 368 adds gender identity to Nevada’s housing anti-discrimination law.

Whoo-hoo Nevada!

LGBT Community: about 9 Million in the US

According to a study done by Gary J. Gates, Williams Distinguished Scholar at the UCLA School of Law, about 9 million or 3,5% of the population of the US identify as members of the LGBT community

Gates compiled his information from four recent national and two state-level population-based surveys.

"Understanding the size of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) population is a critical first step to informing a host of public policy and research topics," Gates' report said. "Examples include assessing health and economic disparities in the LGBT community, understanding the prevalence of anti-LGBT discrimination, and considering the economic impact of marriage equality or the provision of domestic partnership benefits to same-sex couples."

A few interesting facts from the study:
• women are more likely than men to identify as bisexual
• about 19 million respondents say they have engaged in same-sex sexual behavior
• nearly 26 million Americans acknowledge some same-sex sexual attraction

When you take all that "extra" criteria into account, I think the word "identify" becomes a somewhat narrow term.  Just my .02

You can read the entire report by clicking here.