Eleven U.S. cities have earned a
perfect score on the Human Rights Campaign's (HRC) inaugural
Municipal Equality Index (MEI), which measures a city's support for
LGBT rights.
Of the 137 municipalities included in
HRC's first survey, less than 10 percent received a 100 percent
score. Those cities are Los Angeles, San Diego, San Francisco, Long
Beach, Boston, Cambridge (MA), St. Louis, New York City, Portland
(OR), Philadelphia and Seattle.
Cities which scored the lowest include
Montgomery, Alabama (0%), Avondale Estates, Georgia (8%), Frankfort,
Kentucky (0%), Baton Rouge, Louisiana (2%), Pleasant Ridge, Michigan
(3%), Jackson, Mississippi (8%), Jefferson City, Missouri (0%) and
Cheyenne, Wyoming (0%).
Included in the survey are the 50 state
capitals, the nation's 50 most populous cities, and the 25 large, 25
mid-size, and 25 small municipalities with the highest proportion of
gay and lesbian couples.
The MEI rates municipalities based on
47 criteria in 6 categories, including non-discrimination laws,
relationship recognition, the city's employment practices, and the
inclusiveness of city services, law enforcement and municipal
leadership.
(Complete
MEI survey.)