Why are young men turning their backs on LGBT+ people? Generation Z surprises with return to conservative attitudes
Not long ago, it seemed that with the advent of Generation Z, society would naturally move towards greater openness and respect for queer people. But new data suggests that the trend may not be so clear-cut. According to research by the Pew Research Center and a report by the think tank American Institute for Boys and Men (AIBM), some young men are beginning to revert to the attitudes of older generations in their views on LGBTQ+ rights.
Men born after 2000 are significantly less supportive of same-sex marriage and acceptance of homosexuality itself than their predecessors from the 1980s and 1990s - and significantly more conservative than women of the same age.
Support is falling, the gap is growing
While 71 percent of men born in 2000 and later support the legalization of same-sex marriage, the figure is 77 percent for men born in the 1990s and 73 percent for the 1980s generation. An even starker divide emerges in general attitudes towards homosexuality: 65 per cent of young men support its acceptance in society, seven percentage points lower than the generation of the 1990s.
For women, the picture is markedly different. Among young people under 24, 83 per cent of female respondents support same-sex marriage and 82 per cent consider homosexuality to be something that should be socially accepted. AIBM notes that it is among the generation born after 2000 that the gender gap in views is greatest across issues and decades.
Trans rights as the biggest tipping point
The biggest tension concerns the rights of trans people. While 60 per cent of young women believe that trans people should be fully accepted by society, among men of the same age the figure is only 44 per cent. The 16 percentage point difference is the highest of all the areas surveyed. Similarly significant differences are found in support for homosexuality in general (17 percentage points) or same-sex marriage (12 points).
Influence of ideology and religion
According to Professor Ryan Burge of Washington University, the results suggest a growing influence of ideological and religiously motivated messages, particularly from the right-wing. "As academics often say - we need more time and more data," he said. "The next five years will fundamentally show which direction young men and women will develop in relation to religion and social issues. As their lives stabilize, they enter the workforce and some start families, we will see if these attitudes really take root."
A generation full of contradictions
Other data provide an interesting contrast. Research from 2024 shows that Generation Z is more likely to identify as LGBTQ+ than as Republican. According to a survey by Axios, only 21 percent of 12- to 27-year-olds identify as Republican, while more than a quarter identify as queer. It also shows that young people are, on average, more religious than previous generations.
The results thus paint a contradictory picture. On the one hand, the visibility of queer people and their representation among young people is increasing. On the other hand, some young men are leaning towards more conservative attitudes, which may slow down the social shift towards equality. What this means for the queer community - and for society as a whole - is that the question of acceptance is not a closed chapter, but an ongoing process.
