Urvashi Vaid LGBTQ Women’s Survey at NCLR
Led by author, attorney, visionary, and activist Urvashi Vaid, the National LGBTQ Women’s Community Survey is the pinnacle data set for seeing and understanding the lives and needs of queer women.
In 2015, Urvashi developed Justice Work, a non-profit think tank and action lab designed to incubate creative social justice projects that would evolve and spin-off either as stand-alone entities or as programs within larger national organizations.
In partnership with the Critical Race Data Lab at Emory University, Justice Work created a living and dynamic tool for social justice.
NCLR is honored to steward this project and use this data to strengthen our movements, shift policy agendas, increase funding streams, and direct them to where they are needed most.
Our goals are simple:
1. Ensure radical access to this data.
2. Share the findings in accessible and tangible ways.
3. Highlight and elevate the experiences of LGBTQ+ women in our movement.
Join us on a journey of exploration and celebration and the esteemed honor of continuing the work of one of the greatest thinkers—and doers—of our movement, Urvashi Vaid.
The Data
The data is designed to be searchable and usable by all of us! You must sign on as a partner to access it, but please feel free to peruse the results.
We will continually share resources and new findings — please check back periodically for new updates.
The Resources
We regularly update this section with new resources, with the most recent appearing below. Please download them for your presentations and work, using the provided citation.
The National LGBTQ+ Women’s Community Survey: Health Findings Brief
Study principals wondered: When LGBTQ+ women partner or make family with LGBTQ+ women, how do the burdens of misogyny, racism, ableism and other forms of discrimination add up in our lives? How do they impact our health specifically? What strategies best support us in building the lives we want, regardless? How and under what circumstances are we thriving?
media
Many LGBTQ+ women face discrimination and violence, but find support in
friendships
NPR | July 1, 2023
Eye-opening LGBTQ+ women’s survey shatters myths and spotlights challenges
Windy City Times | November 15, 2023
A Large New Survey Sheds Nuanced Light on the State of Being an LGBTQ+ Woman
The Body | November 7, 2023
National LGBTQ+ Women’s Community Survey findings released
Blade | October 12, 2023
Queer women are prioritizing climate and health issues over LGBTQ+ rights, new poll shows
The 19th | October 20, 2023
Report from National LGBTQ+ Women’s Community Survey includes high rates
of disability, intimate partner violence
Windy City Times | October 18, 2023
Celebratory Declarations: What queer women love about their identity
The 19th | November 7, 2023
Podcast: Community Surveys and Feminist Methodologies with Jaime Grant
Beyond Voting | April 3, 2021
The Advisory Committee
This body of research and its dynamic findings would not have been possible without the incredible work of so many!
A. Sparks
Executive Director
Masto Foundation (CA)
Alice Y. Hom, PH.D.
Executive Director
Change Philanthropy (CA)
Alok Vaid-Menon
Performance Artist, Author
Femme in Public (NY)
Alyce Emory
Co-Founder, Executive Director
Beyond Bold and Brave/ Black Lesbian Conference (NY)
Amelie Zurn, MSW
Social Worker & Queer Health Activist, Founding Director
Lesbian Services, Whitman-Walker Health (D.C.)
Honorable Andrea Jenkins
Vice President of the City Council, Minneapolis (MN)
Bianca D. M. Wilson, PH.D.
Senior Public Policy Scholar
Williams Institute, UCLA (CA)
Cathy Cohen Ph.D.
Distinguished Professor
University of Chicago
Founder Black Youth Project (IL)
Coya White Hat-Artichoker
Program Officer
Ms. Foundation
Dean Spade, Esq.
Professor of Law
Seattle University School of Law (WA)
Ignacio G. Rivera, M.A.
Founder
HEAL Project (MD)
Imani Woody, PH.D.
Founder and CEO
Mary’s House for Older Adults (D.C.)
Jack Harrison-Quintana
Founder
Grindr’s Global Human Rights Program
Grindr 4 Equality (D.C.)
Juan Battle, PH.D.
Presidential Professor
Graduate Center CUNY,
Co-Founder of the Social Justice Sexuality Initiative (NY)
Loraine Hutchins
Bi Movement Leader
Author of Bi Any Other Name (MD)
M. V. Lee Badgett, PH.D.
Distinguished Scholar
Williams Institute, UCLA (CA)
Mandy Carter
Founder
Southerners on New Ground (NC)
Mary Anne Adams
Founding Executive Director
ZAMI NOBLA (GA)
Sandra Nathan, PH.D.
Managing Director of Operations
Humanity United (NY)
Sandy E. James, Esq., Ph.D.
Research/Project Director
2015 U.S. Transgender Survey (MD)
Suzanne Goldberg, Esq.
Professor of Law
Columbia Law School (NY)
Deputy Assistant Secretary for Strategic Operations and Outreach
Office of Civil Rights (DC)
Tonia Poteat, M.D
Simmons Scholar
Social Medicine Faculty,
University of North Carolina School of Medicine (NC)
The Study team
NCLR will continue to partner with the Study Team — researchers, social scientists, writers, and seekers.
Carla Sutherland, Ph.D.
Executive Director
Justice Work
Alyasah Ali Sewell, Ph.D.
Survey Research Director
Emory University
Jaime M. Grant, Ph.D.
Survey Co-Founder and Editor
Report Writing Team
The Partners
The collection of comprehensive date from more than 5,000 individuals took a village. Thank you to the many organizations who participated in creating, disseminating and collecting data for this survey!
American Veterans For Equal Rights
Astraea Lesbian Foundation for Justice
Beyond Bold And Brave/Black Lesbian Conferences
Bisexual Queer Alliance Chicago
Consortium of Higher Education LGBT Resource Professionals
Diversity Collective Ventura County
Eastern Michigan University LGBT Resource Center
GLMA: Health Professionals Advancing LGBTQ Equality
Gay Activist Alliance in Morris County
Hartford Gay and Lesbian Health Collective
Hudson Valley LGBTQ+ Community Center
Humboldt State University Queer Student Union
InterACT:Advocates for Intersex Youth
Kansas City Anti-Violence Project
Kentucky Youth Law Project, Inc.
LGBTQ Center at East Carolina University
LGBTQ Community Center of the Desert
LGBTQ Scholars of Color Network
LGBTQ+ Center, University of Hawai’i at Mānoa
Metropolitan Community Churches
National Center for Lesbian Rights
National Center for Transgender Equality
National LGBT Media Association
National Queer Asian Pacific Islander Alliance
North Shore Alliance of GLBT Youth (NAGLY)
OutReach LGBT Community Center
PFLAG Wilmington Northern, DE Inc
Portland State University The Queer Resource Center
Queer Resource Center, Portland State University
Rainbow Community Center of Contra Costa County
San Gabriel Valley LGBTQ+ Center
Services and Advocacy for Gay, lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender Elders
Sexual & Gender Minority Youth Resource Center (SMYRC)
Southern Illinois University Edwardsville
UCLA LGBTQ Campus Resource Center
University of Miami LGBTQ Student Center
University of Michigan Spectrum Center
University of Idaho LGBTQA Office