A new report found the highest
percentages of gay and lesbian couples who are raising children are
located in socially conservatives states where such families are less
likely to be recognized.
According to new estimates from the
Williams Institute at the UCLA School of Law, Salt Lake City and its
suburbs have the nation's highest percentage of gay parents. More
than 25 percent of gay couples in the Salt Lake City area are raising
children.
Researchers also found that Mississippi
ranks highest among states, with 26 percent of gay couples parenting.
However, the number of gay couples
raising children is higher in more liberal cities such as New York or
Los Angeles, where larger numbers of gay couples reside.
Researchers noted that many of the gay
couples living in conservative areas came out gay after they had
children with opposite-sex partners.
“When you ask, 'Why are you living
here?' they almost always say family,” Abbie Goldberg, an associate
professor of psychology at Clark University, who has studied such
couples, told the
Los
Angeles Times. “It shouldn't really be surprising. They
value family – and now they're creating families of their own.”