Hopefully the data from this survey will
influence mainstream business to consider the LGBT community as a market to
capture and serve.
When I shop I look for gay-friendly
businesses only. I don't spend money at
religious or close-minded businesses like Hallmark, Winn-Dixie etc. I will never travel to Utah because of the
Mormon influences there. I spend money
with Disney because they are gay-friendly and offer domestic partner benefits
for their employees.
I enjoyed filling out this survey because it
will let businesses have a greater knowledge and understanding of gay and
lesbian needs.
I hope that businesses realize that we do
definitely exist and that certain choices they make or support affect how my
family and I decide where to buy our stuff.
I wanted to comment about the questions
concerning gay themed advertisements. I
respond or notice gay themed advertisement in mainstream publication more so
than advertisements in gay publications.
Advertisements in gay publications are less noticeable because the gay
theme of the advertisement is only secondary to an already gay subject matter.
Advertisers that include GLBT influences in
their ads will certainly receive more of my money than advertisers who ignore
us!
The Q&A concerning buying of products from companies
that are Gay Friendly:
I have always felt very strongly about this and would like
to know more companies that are and are not gay friendly.
Companies need to
know that most gay/lesbians would be much more willing to buy from a
"family" orientated company than those that are not.
Thanks so much for creating this survey. My
friends and I try to make sure that our dollars are going to companies that
publicly recognize the contributions of their GLBT employees. We purchase
products and services from companies that advertise in our local gay
publications. I also check the local Gay and Lesbian Yellow pages first, when
shopping for a specific product and service provider. I feel that we should all
support our community whenever possible.
I hope that these surveys will be forwarded
to all major competitors and corporations, so that they will realize we, as
queers, are a potential market.
Some of the questions are not clear or can
be taken to mean different things. For instance, under PETS, the question asks
what type of food my pet prefers. What
he PREFERS is moist, canned dog food.
What he GETS is mostly dry dog food.
The question about whether my company
offering domestic partner health care benefits was important to my choosing to
work there: They weren't offering those
benefits when I started there, but it would be somewhat important to me if I
applied there today.
as for the health insurance...my insurance
company requires for my partner and I to reside together for one year full time to be eligible for insurance
coverage for herself
I have worked for a large corporation (Home
Depot) for over three years now and it amazes me that they still do not have
domestic partner benefits.
Tyco international, owners of ADT and other
companies, is NOT gay Friendly
Domestic partner employee benefits are
extremely important. As I am currently
self-employed, survey did not allow me to comment on that.
Companies would do well to include
gay-oriented themes in their advertisements.
I am highly upset that my employer (the US
postal service does not offer benefits like health insurance to unmarried
partners, gay or straight.
I would like to
have more information about the reception of this statistical data by businesses.
Like it or not, the only way to get people
to take notice is through their wallets.
GLBT outspend the bible-thumpers; corporations and politicians need to
know that.
What the money machines need to know is that
we all will move to Canada soon if they don't move quickly to give us our
rights for marriage, job protection and hate crimes protection at a federal
level.
I am sorry if I did not answer all of the
questions correctly or if I left some blank.
Some did not apply to me because I am still living with my parents. Thanks for putting together a survey. I hope it helps create the equal rights we
deserve. I look forward to the day when
discrimination because of a person's sexual orientation is considered strange
and barbaric.
This is the second year I have participated
in the census. I think it is really making a difference in our communities.
Keep up the good work!
I believe the world needs to know more about
the gay and lesbian community. Too many have made decisions about what gays and
lesbians are like without ever meeting one.
The straight community has put a black cloud over our heads that we need
to remove. My partner and I are both
still slightly in the closet because of our families. I would love to be able to talk to my straight friends about the
fun my partner and I had when we went camping but they just see one aspect of a
lesbian relationship and that is "sex". It is not fair.
Thanks for taking the initiative to identify
the consumer spending and purchasing power of the gay community. The
sociological information should be helpful in identifying our community as a
powerful demographic.
I have a hard time believing that we are
only 10% of society. Either I have become a magnet for Gays/Lesbians that I
have met in the past 10 years or there are a lot more of us out there then
before. I sure would like to know.
Except for health issues and entertainment I
consider myself just another human being.
I don't have to look for someone to meet my "special" GLBT
needs.
How come you didn't ask the gender of my pet
or its sexual orientation?
I love taking these surveys, will you be
conducting new weekly versions, as I don't have much of a life, and I live to
provide personal, insightful information about myself - as I find myself
fascinating!
This was a very long survey but it is just
one of the really easy things GLBT people can do to improve our status in
mainstream America. I consider it an obligation on our part to participate in
this survey.
I have been very ill the past four
years. Before my illness, my answers
would have shown a much broader scope and variety in my lifestyle. Soon I will be returning to the workforce
and a more social gay life. I
appreciate the opportunity to participate in this census, however, because I do
express the unique lifestyle of many gay men who are HIV positive and spend a
least a part of their lives virtually homebound.
Most of the questions were good but I don't
feel as though I need any special treatment/services just because I'm GAY.
I am really proud to be one of many that
take this survey but hurt to see many have not. Statically, can we really tell
if we are treated fairly or equally in our buying power... NO!!! Someone
actually needs to take the time and find out what's going on and how we the
people of the Gay, Lesbian community feel.
My feelings are so strong for my community
but at times, a lot of stuff that occurs makes me question if we are really
being properly treated as a human beings or just another statistic. My
apologies if my thoughts upset anyone but that's just me and well, I see the
real things that occur.
I am disabled, but am working and going to
school while raising my daughter and son.
My budget us stretched so tight it squeaks. When I do get to make a purchase, I do research carefully whether
a company treats its GLBT employees as well as its straight employees. I also look for good relations between the
company and its GLBT customers. As a
volunteer activity, I serve on the board of directors of Identity, Inc., which
runs the Gay & Lesbian Community Center of Anchorage, the Helpline,
publishes the monthly GLBT magazine NorthView, and organizes events such as
PrideFest.
We will stand and be counted!!!
All gay travel options are traditionally more
expensive than others. Not worth it to me, to travel exclusively with gay
people only
Gay themed is a tired theme-we get along
just fine with all folks for the most part and are a bit weary of GLBT this ‘n
that. Excellent census. I hope the
information gathered will help better our common lives as gay citizens in a
free society. Thank you for this
opportunity to stand up and be counted.
I was disappointed in how few people filled
out the survey last year and have sent emails out to EVERYONE I know to send on
to others including interest groups.
You need more advertising to get the word out for this important Census.
Thank you for acknowledging the importance
of this type of survey! I would like to
add that most of my information/news is in the form of Internet
searches/messages because gay/lesbian/transgendered information is not easily
found in mainstream media.
Thank you for caring enough to create this
census. I would love to participate in anything that might help my community,
but do remember that I live with my parents,(who do not know about my
orientation) and can not receive any mail identified as gay-related. But feel
free to send anything to my email, which is private. Thank you again.
I haven't participated in much of this
because I’m transgendered and can't find a decent job.
Keep up the active interest in the
betterment/improvement of the Gay community!
If I were allowed one wish--ok maybe 3 wishes, one would surely be that
the info. given on behalf of your participants be utilized constructively to
initiate Gay Rights-oriented laws, education, etc. The gay community and
ultimately the world in general is a better place because surveys such as this
one exist. Cheers!
Thank you for including me in this
census...these things are vitally important...not just for the GLBT community,
but as a way of educating the world-at-large about ourselves...and education
always leads to tolerance and acceptance!
Pleased that you are gathering so much
information. I hope it helps to make better services, policies, and options
available for ALL citizens!
if you mail the results to me via snail,
please don't make it noted this is a Gay survey, because I am not yet OUT.
Do kind of wish more was asked than just the
consumer stuff though I understand the interest here is in demographics. Question that I truly was surprised not to
see was do we avoid companies / stores etc that are known to have bad attitude
towards GLBT and/or have pulled advertising etc. - would have loved to be able
to assert how much that stuff pisses me off though I am pretty mild mannered
otherwise.
Hope this helps. I am very out and very
proud! Feel free to share my info with anyone!
I think this survey is very important so
that the community knows what the statistics are and also so that the straight
community can see that we are more like them than what they want to admit.
Thank you for giving the community the opportunity to complete this survey!
I hope you all do a study later about gay
poverty. This study felt bourgeois to me
and you know how the Far Right likes to say we are rich and therefore free from
discrimination.
Being as old as I am and not being out but 3
yrs. I'm so surprised and pleased that this type of survey is conducted. I know
it will be, and is, helpful. I'm anxious to see the results. Thanks!!
As a product manager, I can see you are
collecting some very valuable demographic and spending habit information about
gays and lesbians. Hopefully,
mainstream companies will see and realize the power of the gay dollar.
Live on a limited Disability budget because
of AIDS -- don't really have a life anymore. Don't know how valuable my info
will be to you but here it is...
Thank you for making it possible to make our
opinions count!!!
Gay friendly companies are very important in
my decision making process. One of the main reasons I bought my Subaru Outback
was because of the company's support for gay causes.
Thank you for allowing me the chance for my
voice to be heard.
Thanks for the offer of being heard!!! We as
a Gay/Lesbian community need to let our Brothers and Sisters know we ALL
COUNT!!!!! Every single last one of us!!! Spread Love Not Hate!!! Keep our
Voices Loud And Proud!!!! Peace And Love To You All!!!!!
I hope that the time spent by so many of us
makes a difference, thank you for conducting and trying.
We definitely need to do whatever we can to
become more visible in the eyes of John Q. Public!
I'm glad I had this opportunity to respond.
I am young, female, educated, and I vote!!!
I was a little disappointed that there
weren’t more questions about how advertising really affected me or my feelings
about advertising in relation to being gay.
How companies really should be including more mass marketing that in the
least does not only appeal to the heterosexual set.
This was fun & interesting. I learned a lot about myself, too.
No question was asked about whether we as a
lesbian couple are expecting a child soon.
We went through artificial insemination and are expecting our baby July
19, 2002. We have planned it for a long
time, this is my third child and her first...I just think it is a very
important thing not to ask. Also, if I
found a company offering domestic partner benefits I would quit my job in a
heartbeat...I also think it is important to ask gays whether they would leave
their current employer for a job with those benefits.
Thank you for including our pets in the
survey!
How will this be made public to the straight
community, who are the ones who really need to know we're here?
Thanks so much for giving us a reason to
stay true to who we are.
Thanks for doing this. I would love to see the word get out to
those in the marketing field. My
partner and I went to an appliance store with cash in hand to buy top of the
line front-loading washer and dryer, not one sales person even made eye contact
with us. They missed out on a $2500
sale. Again, thanks I hope you make a
difference.
Great, what about us aids patients, not
working, so results may be off - I’m lucky I’m rich, many questions would
appear to represent the working corporate guy, anyway, good luck!
I came out 7 years ago and fought my ex
husband to keep my sons. My 21-year-old
joining the Air Force - Special Teams, and my 17-year-old son, just graduated
from High School in May and left today for the Coast Guard. Both have been very active with my work and
community service. I was a freelance
photographer in the Dallas area; I have never lied to them and taught them to
have passion and honesty in their lives.
It has been a struggle raising two sons primarily alone, but I am
honored as a lesbian mother, that my sons chose to continue with the values
that I taught them, while with their father, and while raising them alone. My ex-husband is a Dallas Firefighter, and
now my sons are in the military. I am
enjoying a newfound freedom and have decided to study and practice holistic
medicine.
The survey seems very CONSUMER
oriented. What about personal beliefs,
relationship status, philosophies, political activities, etc? Or are we seen merely as $$CONSUMERS$$ and
little more?
Good Luck with the survey. I will pass it
out to friends here at the Real Estate Company. We have 3 gay Realtors in a very conservative town!
Found the Survey to be very complete.
Thank you for this opportunity.
I was glad to have helped
I love this! Thank you for asking!
Thanks for the opportunity to participate
Keep up the great work - it's time the
marketplace knew what kind of economic muscles gay and lesbian people can flex.
Thanks to everyone who's responsible for
compiling and analyzing this survey. Keep up the good work! Hopefully someday
soon we'll start seeing more people "like us" on TV, in film, on
radio, and in print!
Thank you giving me the forum to voice my
gay consumer needs. It’s wonderful and exciting that this census exists!!
Thanks - great job!
Great work.
Keep it up. This will help the Gay/Lesbian community.
It's been a pleasure, let's make a
difference!
Glad to have participated. =P
This is a great survey. Thank you for
considering me.
Thank you for taking an interest in what gay
people think, do and buy.
This is an invaluable tool for giving voice
to the GLBT community. I applaud the efforts of all involved. Keep up the good
work.
Thanks for the opportunity to be part of
such an important survey.
Very thorough survey. I hope you get the
response you are looking for. I’m happy to have participated. :o)
I hope this helps to get more gay oriented
advertisements. We're consumers, too!
This is great...keep up to good work. I hope
this survey will make a difference in our society.
It was a pleasure to take this survey. It
made me feel like someone cared about our segment of the population.
VERY INTERESTING AND VERY THOROUGH. HOPE A
LOT OF PEOPLE PARTICIPATE IN YOUR SURVEY.
Love the survey!
Awesome census
This was great. I look forward to reading
the results of this. Thanks for your time and energy and interest! :)
Thanks for enabling me to participate in a
survey that was well worth the time in taking.
My only problem with this census was the
religion inquiry. The choices "Satanist" and "agnostic"
were not available. I also feel as if I
was not represented fully.
Looking forward to the results. Keep up the
good work!
I am very glad someone decided to coordinate
this. It is essential that our voices
are heard. Right on!
Thank you for compiling such a thorough
survey. I learned of it through an
article on Gay Wired and will forward your URL to as all my GLBT friends. Society and social change has always
centered on money, this is a great way to be heard! I work for the survey group at a research organization in Santa
Monica and found this Internet survey to be very clean and easy to use. Keep up the good work!
Excellent survey. I'm impressed with how it covers a wide range of topics and
interests. Please make sure that any communication is via e-mail. Thank-you!!!
Thank you all: Who are working to make the
gay and lesbian voice heard.
Thank you so much for caring for such an
important subject that is the GLBT lifestyle and how it affects corporate
America. Maybe things will be brighter for us from now on. Keep up the good
work!
Very Comprehensive! If only they had done
this sooner!
FINALLY THE GAY COMMUNITY HAS A CHANCE TO BE
RECOGNIZED WITH EVERYDAY BUSINESS'S IN A COMFY ATMOSPHERE.
Pertinent questions, though sometimes a bit
to general. Thanks for allowing me to
participate!
It was a good census and covered lots of
material. Very well rounded.
Enjoyed the survey. Like to see more.
I have sent this site to my other
friends. I hope that it helps :-)
Just glad to be included in the census
again...many thanks.
Some of the questions didn't apply to me so
I didn't answer them. But I liked answering the ones I could.
Thanks.
I'm glad you're doing this.
I am very glad this is finally being
collected and looked at. Thank you!!
Very good census. Hope more people get this
out and answer them and be counted.
Thanks for allowing us to be counted in this
country
This is great. What a sociological
undertaking!!
Cool census survey. Makes me wanna get out
there and do more things now. :)
Wonderful survey!
I would like to see more detailed questions
in regards to political activity (ex. How often do you vote? Would you consider
voting for a member of the ______ Party?) and more specifics about
entertainment. I would suggest more in regards to religion, though I believe
this is mainly a consumer/commercial questionnaire and may not be as interested
in the specifics of this topic. Thanks for the opportunity! I look forward to
the results.
I feel this is a wonderful idea! Not enough is done to research the diversity
within the gay/lesbian community (in my opinion anyway). Thanks for giving us a voice!
I'm so glad that we are finally being
counted!
I appreciate this kind of work. It is my first time doing this type of
questions.
Thank You for the opportunity to have our
voices heard...
Thanks for the opportunity to say my
opinions and state my beliefs
Thanks for putting this important research
together!
I'm glad you all are doing this. I hope it
makes a difference.
Thank you for your support!!!
Good luck with everything :) Glad there is now something like this for
the GLBT community :)
Excellent Survey. Long, but thorough.
Most interesting survey I've taken in a long
while - enjoyed it over a cup of morning coffee.
Thanks for such a comprehensive survey!
Hopefully, the results will reveal how ingrained in the fabric of life we are
as the GLBT community, and that our demographic counts!!
THANK YOU FOR SENDING ME THIS INCREDIBLE
SURVEY.
I would love to be contacted to help with
anything else
Best of luck with your survey. Thank you for
allowing my partner and I to participate.
Good survey!! Need more like it to get our
opinions out in the "real" world.
Thanks for the opportunity to take the
survey. Every voice does count.
Thanks for letting us participate in the
census and letting us make our voices heard.
Too often we are an ignored minority, and we need to let people know
that we are here--everywhere.
Excellent! Interesting to see how little I
do in the sports arenas! Not your
typical lesbian I guess! But I do have
two dogs.
I was glad to be a part of this research
survey, and I have passed this census onto all of my gay/lesbian friends.
Thanks!! : )
This was a great census to fill out. Glad to
know someone is paying attention to the gay/lesbian consumers.
I am always glad to see surveys interested
in the gay/lesbian opinion. I will pass this along to others.
IT IS A LONG SURVEY BUT WE DO NEED TO BE
COUNTED
WONDERFUL SURVEY...I HOPE THE PEOPLE WHO
NEED THIS INFORMATION WILL DO GREAT AND FANTASTIC THINGS WITH IT.
Thank you for conducting this survey to get
the GLBT community more involved.
Very detailed survey! Can't wait for the results!
Finally!
Thanks for soliciting my opinion.
I think this is an invaluable service to our
community; giving detailed marketing information to companies that will change
public opinion.
This is a great idea! I'm glad I found it
and was able to participate.
Thank you for the excellent work you all are
doing for our community
Very thorough consumer census
It'll be great that you could sell a kit to
apply this study in other countries for GLBT organizations
France
Poland
Italy
Russia
New Zealand
The Netherlands
United Kingdom (US Citizen Living Abroad)
Respect your international survey takers.
Give option for international information (if you want it). State is NSW
1) No allowances for bi in an opposite sex
relationship in the family section.
2) Hard to answer health insurance questions
if not an American citizen; no N/A, Not American option. 3) No "average less than 1 glass/bottle
per week" in the alcohol section.
Otherwise, no problems.
You do realize that this survey is heavily
US-oriented? For example, the only way
I could answer the health insurance question was to take "Medicare"
in the Canadian sense, as referring to our government provided health
insurance.
And while I don't have an IRA, I do have the
Canadian equivalent, an RRSP.
Why is this only applicable to Americans?
We have been living in the UK for the last
18 months only, and are originally from South Africa, so some of the
information is not filled in. Hopefully
what has been completed will be of some help.
I am from Australia. There is a question which states this
however I did not know what currency the questionnaire was in so I took it as
being US dollars. The questionnaire arrogantly asks questions and lists American
answers without any option for overseas answers, I found this annoying and it
could lead to the data being inappropriate, as I had to answer as best I could,
and not fully. I am glad a questionnaire like this exists and I am happy to
participate, I hope to see more in the future.
The questions are typical for America, but I
did answer as good as possible.
Sorry I couldn’t be more specific...but
because I am Canadian...I cant. Also I
spend a great deal of my time in America with my girlfriend.
As a Canadian male living in a rural
community I find many of the questions are designed/directed to those who
reside in a larger city centre. Future
information gathering efforts could include those of us who have chosen a rural
existence.
Argentina does not figure in the
"Countries" list, so I chose Uruguay, which is the closest country I
found. Check your Geography books next time!!
Your questions are too narrowly US-oriented
when the Internet is a global resource of interest to gay people everywhere.
Some questions cant be answered, not just
because of country differences but you just did not cover subjects. The
questions about children under 18, do you think that once a child turns 18 the
parent is no longer responsible I have a child over 18, he is still very much a
part of my life, I support him financially and his needs are as important to me
now as they were when he was little. You need to take extended family
commitments into consideration as well.
Where can I volunteer for gay rights in
India?
The census is mostly geared to US gay and
lesbians, especially medical questions.
And there is a civil union in France it is called a PACS.
This census was easy to follow and complete
however I think it should be laid out in euros and British Sterling monies
also. I enjoyed filling in this and
look forward to receiving the results.
Under religion you have
"Episcopal" but not "Anglican". Episcopal is the name for
Anglicans in the US only. Would be cool if there was a separate listing for
Anglican.
Questions on health care problematic for
Canadians as we have universal coverage through the government - only private
care for dental.
I am disappointed that there were no
questions about bi-national couples, and immigration issues
I know it’s an American university that's doing
the census, but it gave the impression of being an international census at the
start. Most of the questions are geared
towards an American audience: the travel question was about places you had been
to in America first; we don't have health insurance here in the UK in the same
way as in the US and IRA over here means something quite different to a type of
financial account. It would have just
been handy to have a US-only type warning at the start.
You allow me to indicate that I live in
Morocco during the questionnaire; however, you don't configure your address
portion accordingly. Also, you don't have a line to indicate "Other"
in the automotive portion; I drive a Peugeot 309!!!
A lot of these question seem to be oriented
for US citizens... what about people like me who aren't so 'lucky'? I hope that as a Canadian, my survey will be
included as part of your overall results!
The medical questions didn't quite fit our
situation here in Canada, where we have universal medical care. My college and
my partner's college provide us with additional coverage for prescription
drugs, glasses, and dental care. I'm not sure I could answer the questions
appropriately enough, given the way they were phrased.
I would be living with my partner if current
INS law recognized same-sex partnerships for the purposes of immigration. Sure hope I'll be seeing a survey that
includes this issue in detail someday -- thanks!
The reason my partner and I are not living
together at this time is because we are a bi-national couple, she is an
American citizen, and I am an Australian citizen, and right now, current US
immigration laws do not recognize the validity of same sex relationships for
immigration purposes. So we are forced
to live apart for unknown periods of time.
Answers to health benefit questions may be
out irrelevant to State organized health care systems here in Europe
Make aspects of this survey more
international and widen the results of the community to an international level.
This sure was a long survey, but I'm glad I
did it!!!!
This was a rather long survey but I'm happy
to be able to participate in something to help people understand more about the
different types of gay lifestyles
Good survey but it was to long and some
stuff probably was not needed
This was entirely too long, even with being
able to log off and on
This survey takes longer than half an hour,
but I have ADHD as well, so that makes things different :). I really
appreciated the opportunity to stop taking the survey, saving my results, and
returning to it. Some other sites offer that, but they don't really save the
information!
Lengthy, but hopefully important.
Although it was a long survey, I feel it was
worth it.
I think perhaps if it was more compact, you
might get more responses
Kinda long, complex, but I suppose it will
all come out in the wash.
This census is a little to long but I had a
good time with it. Thanks.
A little too long, but other than that, I
enjoyed filling it out.
Phew!! You were right this was a long survey. *Smile*
Some of family questions were difficult to
answer because of complexity of compound family arrangements.
No allowances for transgendered/transsexual
lives.
I was surprised there were no questions
about vacation/second homes.
On the section about "most influence me
to purchase (something or other)" the cursor would not let me pick 1 on
more than one section. and some times price and package are very much influence
on purchase making decisions.
I live in a rural small town area. More
questions should be related to country living.
As far as the questions on how many drinks
per week, the lowest number you had was one, but I drink less then one a
week. This may include a beer or a
mixed drink and I may have one every month or two.
Did not go
nearly in-depth as expected or wanted.
I am handicapped and there was not one
question to identify same.
The question following religious
affiliation: "Are you practicing?” While it is obvious that it was meant
to refer to current religious practices, given the GLBT cohort of this study
there are literally 100's of possibilities from which one could have chosen an
answer the question as stated, and the most significant category would
certainly be related to one's sexual practice, which is very likely quite the
polar opposite response to the one intended.
Some
questions didn't contain enough choices or, more specifically did not include
the "singular" choice, for example regarding sports activities, if
one has done an activity once only, "never" was not true and
"occasionally” overstates the reality.
Questions regarding gay vs. non-gay owned and gay/non-gay friendly
business omitted decisions made based on differences/discrepancies in access
and quality of services and product, and knowing how "gay friendly" a
particular business is may be the result of friendly staff rather than
outlet/company policies being, therefore, extremely subjective. Who knows who
owns most of the business encountered in any given year, let alone whether
those proprietors are gay/gay friendly or not?
Thus these questions were biased towards gay businesses that are labeled
as such/openly "out" and cater to the GLBT community.
Please understand that while my comments may seem a bit detailed,
fussy or of the nature where it is a "I just have to find flaws
somewhere" kind of mentality, they really are offered from the perspective
where the survey was so good, only minor points such as the ones I've made were
discernable and only seemed obvious within the context of the overall quality
of the whole.
My primary TV watching is Nickelodeon and
that was not an option.
"N/A" box needed for less
active/traveled participants.
Please consider separating Internet and
email when asking about their use for researching/considering a purchase. The Internet is my tool of choice for
research. Email (spam) is immediately
deleted w/o being read. Thanks for continuing this. I consider it a great service to our community.
Near the beginning of the survey, you listed
several magazines that we may subscribe to but none included financial
subject. I added mine in
"other" but I've heard the G & L population has the most
disposable income of any demographic so would think that should definitely be
included among magazine titles.
Hopefully, an entrepreneur can see fit to establish a financial
periodical geared specifically for a G & L audience. Thanks.
Thanks for doing this! Next time don't space the option boxes so
far apart, and get the tab order consistent (avowed mouse-hater)
For your questions regarding domestic
partner benefits you should ask if these are important in choosing an employer
not just if you currently have insurance and find this important.
I watch Fox News. It wasn't an option.
1) Add agnostic to religious affiliation. In
the interest of professionalism, 2) Add decline to state on all financial
questions
3) Add provisions for children over 18
There were some questions where zero was a
valid answer, but was not one of the choices.
Your family/children section did not address
children over 18 or grandchildren.
On some questions regarding income you
should have offered a choice of "Decline to say".
No questions about living wills, durable
power of attorney for medical and financial. ??? I'm surprised. MY partner and
I had this completed to safeguard our relationship rights.
I wish that you could advertise this census
more so that there are more participants.
I found out about this by word-of-mouth.
I was impressed with the diversity of
"Asian" ethnic groups listed for self-designation, but am appalled at
the lack of representation of any Middle Eastern or North African groups.
Some of these Questions are tedious, can you
simplify them, or let me invent my own under which category you provide?
Should have been more questions about
political situations and also about how we are treated by gay merchants, like
indifferent to requests, we are expected to use the merchants and restaurants!
1.) I was left out of answering some
questions regarding children because I am a single lesbian mom (i.e., questions
said “if part of a couple”). 2.) I am
mostly a stay-at-home mom right now, and there was no space for that choice, so
my answers may seem odd. 3.) You should include a kayaking/boating choice in
the sports section-I think this is big in the lesbian community now. I just bought I kayak.
Many questions didn't apply to me because of
my work status as a gradate college student with two jobs.
Your survey needs to include the
relationship category 'polyamory' for those of us who have multiple partners
and/or lovers.
Someday there will be a survey that takes
into account blended and polyfidelitous bisexual relationships. Families are
more than just two people with kids.
While I feel that the intent behind this
census is noble, I found many of the questions made general assumptions about
gay people that I simply do not ascribe to - I live in the country, do not
drink, lead a quiet life with my partner.
Please don't forget that there are lots of us out there who do not fit
the gay stereotype.
Add JetBlue to
the airline options.
I would have like to seen a question about
the affordability of health insurance (or lack there of).
I was amazed that some of the questions
concerning activities at certain times of the day did not take into account
those of us who work night or irregular hours and/or irregular days of the
week.
In some of the questions you ask for times;
televison viewing, radio...so on. It would be good to also include a space for
changes with schedule demands. This would be good for people like myself who do
not have a specific schedule.
Other than that I enjoyed the survey, and thank you for all the
work put into making our voices be heard.
Two oversights--Health care includes
Medicare, but not Tricare, which is the military program for retirees. Airlines
omitted Frontier, one of the best going, even if it is not the biggest.
Pet section a little confusing because of
the "if you plan on getting a pet in the next year" response.
Make a census that is also tuned towards
younger gay/lesbian community members.
I am 19, work full-time, go to school full-time, live with my parents,
but I still buy things and my voice should matter.
This is a
great idea! I would have liked more:
1.)
Other fill in
the blank.
2.)
Questions on
voting practices
3.)
Questions on
the philanthropy, civic participation, public service or political affiliations
of places and services I patronize
4.)
Upcoming
travel plans
5.)
Whether I
prefer small or large companies.
I hope retailers of all varieties recognize
that queer patrons want their lifestyles and choices acknowledged by vendors
and service providers. Thanks for representing our voice! Register me as a
conscientious, queer-seeking consumer. I will continue to fill out surveys and
share the opportunity to do so with friends.
You might want to add a couple of questions
about community service/volunteer service or charitable donations.
There was no option to select for
"girlfriend"...we aren't just dating, but we are not yet partners.
A well-put-together survey! I didn't like the section where I had to
rank from 1-6 (in order of importance), but overall, nice job. I also would have liked to be able to
indicate an intention to adopt/have children (beyond the scope of three years).
On the children questions, you should
include a category pertaining to adult children. My beloved and I have raised two beautiful children. But because they are adult and living out of
the household you do not track that statistic.
I believe it is important to show the depth and maturity of the GLBT
family.
Very detailed; you might want to include
some question for us step-grandmothers.
Would like to see questions re:
stepfamilies.
Except for
a couple of occasions of the GLBT moniker...I, as a bisexual male, felt a
little excluded here. I finished it out
of loyalty and commitment to making a change in this world. But I want to be considered a part of SOME
community. And having chosen the GLBT community to be a part of, it would be
nice to be thought of as a member.
I am disabled and nowhere on this census did
disability come into the picture. Why
is that? There are many disabled people
in the community with special needs who also need to be represented.
I felt I didn't answer enough questions more
accurately because a lot of the questions were geared more toward gay/lesbian
adults who are no longer in college.
Your questions did not take into
consideration that I am a bisexual married to a heterosexual.
Good Survey, 1 question you didn't ask: Do
you own more than one car? Which make, year?
Some questions were not that easy for those
of us new to this lifestyle.
Cool survey, though it would have been nice
to have the "check all" option for some of the questions with lots of
radio/checkboxes.
In your sports section, you might add
dancing. I belong to an international Gay/Lesbian square dancing organization.
Gay square dancing is quite aerobic.
Great job...ask more about our
kids/families. We are slowly losing our
right to become or be a parent. Also, racial makeup of families is important.
You should have asked questions about
consumer discrimination, like: have you ever felt discriminated against and/or
otherwise marginalized when purchasing X, Y, Z product? How frequently? For
what products? Are you more likely NOT to purchase a product if you know the
company participates in discriminatory practices? Are you more likely NOT to
purchase a product if you feel its advertising is offensive? Could be perceived
to be offensive?
Some areas need greater detail IE: Airlines,
I will NOT fly anywhere after the abysmal treatment I received on my last
flight. I am not a cow.
Could do with more focus towards
transgender. Our circumstances tend to be very queer, but don't always fit into
traditional gay/lesbian thinking. Other than that... good job, thanks!!
I thought it was a very complete
survey. I'm very pleased to participate
in it. Although in your choice of
dramas you excluded the ABC show “Alias” which I have noticed is very popular
in the GLBT community.
I'm elderly, retired, alone and
semi-closeted, but not recently. I've
done a lot of these things in the last 10 or 15 years, lots of travel. This
looks like it was written for younger consumers.
You should add BET to the list of Cable
channels!
I think this is an interesting survey. One
thing to keep in mind, not all homosexuals do the same things. Additionally,
when asking people what culture they identify with, WHITE people are the only
ones still identified by color. People also don't identify themselves solely
based on culture or sexuality; those are only parts of the whole being. Be as
open minded as you put forward.
Would have loved to seen a question relating
to Veteran Status, other than on VA Health Insurance matters...Most Veterans
'these days' don’t know they're entitled to VA Health benefits. It’s my current
soapbox on www.gayveterans.com/benefits.
In the
fitness section, yoga should be an option.
You should publicize this survey more!!!
Interesting questionnaire but in many cases
I know I am out of target range. My
income is sufficient for one person in the Bay Area but I am currently
supporting a disabled adult at home so I am not much of a consumer in the
"target" sense. I will be
interested to see the results of the polls.
In medical coverage, I think you should add
CHAMPUS/TRICARE (coverage for active duty military, dependents, and retirees)
Not bad, but needs more in the way of the
self-employed area. I am self-employed
and provide my own health insurance but couldn't accurately answer some of the
questions because the option self-employed wasn't present under some of the
questions (like whether my employer provides domestic partner benefits).
I was pleased to be a part of this -
barefoot windjammer cruises needs to be included next time.
In the domestic partner questions, I would
have appreciated an option for "relationship does not qualify." Our
employer requires 7-years together for qualification.
You should include a category of mixed
orientation marriages, i.e. 1 gay/1 straight.
What about stuff for exercising the soul
like making music? Or are we all only interested in bodies, as most tabloids
would have the world believe now that we are no longer invisible?
I am handicapped and didn't note any
consumer questions relative to this. We have special purchasing needs.