The annual Values and Beliefs poll by
opinion group Gallup shows a growing approval of gays and lesbians.
The poll found near universal support of equal rights for gays and
lesbians in terms of job opportunities and a majority accept
homosexuality as an alternative lifestyle.
There was near universal support (89%)
for equal job opportunities for gays and lesbians, with only 8% of
respondents disagreeing.
The poll also found a high-degree of
acceptance for gays and lesbians. When asked if homosexuality should
be considered an “acceptable alternative lifestyle” a majority
(57%) of respondents agreed. The question first appeared in 1982
when only 34% of those surveyed agreed. Agreement dipped in the
summer of 2003 after the Supreme Court struck down a Texas sodomy law
to 54%, but has since increased to 57% in 2007, where it remains
today.
Yet, Americans were more ambivalent
towards gay marriage. And they have reached a deadlock on the morality of
homosexuality.
On the critical issue of gay marriage,
attitudes have budged little since 2004 when 42% said they should be
valid. In 2008, the poll found slightly lower support at 40%.
America finds itself equally divided
over the morality of homosexuality, with 48% considering it morally
acceptable and 48% opposing it. The opinion came to a dead heat when
those who find homosexuality immoral dropped from 53% in 2001, while
acceptance rose from 40%.
“Homosexuality emerges as the most
divisive of 16 major social and cultural issues measured,” the
Gallop team wrote in reporting the results.
About 1,000 adult Americans were asked
to participate in the poll, which was conducted between May 8-11,
2008.