Is Georgia unsafe for LGBTQ community? State gets F on report card, ranks in bottom 10
It's Pride Month, when LGBTQ issues are discussed and communities are celebrated. But should Georgia be a bit more proud all year round?
On Tuesday, SafeHome released its latest state report cards for LGBTQ safety. The grades were based on a composite safety score including a law score (based on pro- and anti-equality legislation) and a hate crime score (based on the incidence of hate crimes against people due to their sexual orientation or gender identity).
Georgia ranked the 10th worst state in this study with a failing grade of an F (58%). When asked for further data they collected, the research team said Georgia had 14 laws that advanced LGBTQ equality, and six laws that detract from equality. However the state had a relatively low number of pro-equality laws in the area of non-discrimination, which carried a higher weight in our scoring system due to their importance to LGBTQ survey respondents. By comparison the top states had closer to 50 pro-equality laws and 0 "anti-equality" laws.
"According to the latest FBI data we analyzed, Georgia had 31 reported hate crimes related to sexual orientation or gender identity. Some states had well over 100 reported hate crimes, but only 56% of Georgia law enforcement agencies reported hate crime data to the FBI, which docked its score."
They went on to report that, according to the ACLU, 14 laws were defeated in the Georgia legislature that would have impacted LGBTQ rights. This year, however, three detrimental laws have been passed related to school facilities and sports bans, prison health restrictions, and religious exemption laws. Ten additional laws are advancing now though the legislative session is adjourned.
Here are the top 10 safest states ranked from best to worst:
Rhode Island
California
Delaware
Connecticut
Nevada
New Hampshire
Minnesota
Virginia
Maine
Colorado
Here are the bottom 10, least-safe states ranked from worst to best:
Florida
Louisiana
Mississippi
Tennessee
Utah
South Dakota
Alabama
Kansas
Nebraska
Georgia
Miguel Legoas is a Deep South Connect Team Reporter for Gannett/USA Today. Find him on Instagram @miguelegoas and email at mlegoas@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Savannah Morning News: Georgia gets failing grade on LGBTQ state safety report card 2025
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