If young people are the future, the future looks pretty queer. According to a survey from UK-based anti-bullying nonprofit Ditch The Label, more and more young people are not identifying as straight — and are foregoing sexuality labels in general.
The survey polled over 1,000 people between the ages of 13 and 26 in the U.S. and UK, and found that 57% said that they did not fit into the traditional definition of heterosexuality. About 47% chose not to label themselves at all, denying terms like "straight," "lesbian," or "gay." What's more, 76% said that labels on sexuality were no longer important, and that people should be able to date whoever they wanted.
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Liam Hackett, founder and CEO of Ditch the Label, told Broadly that this could be attributed to the greater and more accepting representation of LGBTQ people in the media. After all, 90% of those surveyed said that the internet made it easier to explore sexuality because it gave them "an opportunity to explore and come to terms with their sexual preferences at a pace that suits them, free from external pressures."
"The media young people consume now is increasingly representative of a wider range of sexualities," he told Broadly. "And I think giving visibility to people who were once suppressed by society has sent a very positive and clear message: that sexuality is not something that is 'dirty' or should be hidden away."
Given that a Gallup poll from last month revealed that more Americans are identifying as LGBT, it's not too surprising that fewer of us are identifying as straight. Hopefully, the survey's results indicate increasing acceptance of people of different sexualities and gender, despite what some may think.
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