As more people identify as members of the LGBTQ community, the increased visibility is educating folks, as per GLAAD's Accelerating Acceptance Study 2021.
The annual report, which was published on Wednesday (November 3), revealed that 43 percent of non-LGBTQ people think gender is not exclusively male and female. That figure jumped from the 2020 report, which was at 38 percent. Meanwhile, 81 percent of people that don't associate with the LGBTQ community anticipate that individuals who identity as nonbinary and transgender will become as familiar in everyday life in the same way that gay and lesbian individuals have come to know.
"Our community continues to grow, and we're seeing some growing acceptance of that," Sarah Kate Ellis, GLAAD CEO, said in a statement. "We are seeing that the concept of gender, in terms of non-LGBTQ Americans, is evolving."
When it comes to progress, the report revealed that 45 percent of non-LGBTQ individuals admit they're confused by the terms used to describe people in the community. "We know when people meet us and connect, or even meet us through a television or now a phone screen, it builds understanding which builds acceptance," Ellis continued.