LGBT/Queer Demography is Here

Session Submission Type: Invited Session (90 minute)

Description

Kicking off in the 1990s, LGBT demography has become a consequential area of research with an extensive and growing bibliography. By the turn of the century, such efforts had gained broader legitimacy through the increasing inclusion of sexual orientation and gender identity measures in federal data sources, helping to solidify the idea that sexual and gender minority populations could be studied demographically. This expanding body of research has examined the measurement and analysis of sexual and gender identity, as well as patterns in family formation, partnership, parenthood, health, and socioeconomic status.

Panelists will celebrate more than 30 years of demographic and sociological work on LGBTQ+ populations—reflecting on where we are, how we got here, how far we have come, and what lies ahead. The session will provide a review of the field, highlighting key milestones, data innovations, and the social and political shifts that have shaped its trajectory. It will also offer space for candid discussion (“with some tea”) about the latest obstacles and breakthroughs in measuring and understanding queer lives.

Sub Unit

• Sociology of Population Section / LGBT/Queer Demography is Here

Presider

• DLane R. Compton, University of New Orleans

Panelists

• Nancy Bates, Retired, Census Bureau’s Senior Methodologist for Survey Research

• Gayle Kaufman, Davidson College

• VoonChin Phua, Gettysburg College

• Amanda Baumle, University of Houston

• Debra Umberson, University of Texas-Austin

• Aliya Saperstein, Stanford University

• Stephen T. Russell, Arizona State University-Tempe

Discussant

• DLane R. Compton, University of New Orleans

Session Organizer

• DLane R. Compton, University of New Orleans