Catalina Espinosa
Research expert covering society, economy, and politics for Europe and the EU
Get in touch with us nowLGBTQ Europe: share of respondents indicating discrimination is widespread 2019
France, Portugal, and Greece are the three European countries with the greatest share of respondents indicating that homophobia is either fairly or very widespread in 2019. While this may indicate that these countries have a particular problem with homophobia, there is also a possibility that countries where people are more educated about LGBTQ issues, citizens are also more aware of discrimination.
For instance, some countries such as Bulgaria, Latvia, and Slovakia where most respondents say that discrimination against gay people is rare or non-existent also have higher shares of LGBT respondents indicating they have experienced discrimination in other surveys. It may be the case that in these countries, as LGBTQ issues are less widely discussed and education is less inclusive of the queer communities concerns, that the general public is less aware of homophobia.
On the other hand, countries such as the Netherlands, Belgium, and the UK, where LGBTQ people report being able to have a greater level of openness about being gay in their daily lives, report more widespread homophobia. Paradoxically, it may be because of this widespread awareness and openness about LGBTQ issues that more respondents in the general public respond that homophobia is widespread.
For instance, some countries such as Bulgaria, Latvia, and Slovakia where most respondents say that discrimination against gay people is rare or non-existent also have higher shares of LGBT respondents indicating they have experienced discrimination in other surveys. It may be the case that in these countries, as LGBTQ issues are less widely discussed and education is less inclusive of the queer communities concerns, that the general public is less aware of homophobia.
On the other hand, countries such as the Netherlands, Belgium, and the UK, where LGBTQ people report being able to have a greater level of openness about being gay in their daily lives, report more widespread homophobia. Paradoxically, it may be because of this widespread awareness and openness about LGBTQ issues that more respondents in the general public respond that homophobia is widespread.
