A couple of months ago I wrote a blog post about Unsafe Places to be a Gay Man. But not all places in world are unsafe for gay men.
Some places in the world are not only safe for gay men, but places where they can be who they are, love who they love, thrive and live a happy life.
So to give balance to my previous blog post, let’s explore some of the safer places to live for gay men.
To be a safe place for gay men to live places require:
- Be an environment where gay men feel safe from harm or abuse. Where gay men aren’t shrinking/hiding who they are for fear of rejection (or worse fearing conflict) because of who they are.
- Cultural acceptance of gay men.
- Cultural celebration of the diversity that gay men bring.
- Anti-discriminatory laws that include protections specifically for gay men or those of minority sexualities.
- Equality laws that ensure gay men are treated equally and fairly in all areas of their life. This should include the right to marry a person of the same gender. This should also include the right to start a family through the adoption of children, if individual gay men or gay couples want to do this.
- Laws that protect gay men from homophobia and hate crimes.
- Inclusivity as a key value in all institutions, companies and other organisations.
- Representation of gay men in all walks of life, including media, politics and TV shows. Representation should feel validating for the gay men, who at one time, may have known a time where they felt invisible in their communities.
- Providers of services recognising the challenges that some gay men can face. Such as internalised homophobia, having a higher risks associated with sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and higher risk of mental illnesses.
- Providers of service being aware of understanding how historic attitudes and discrimination towards gay men may have impacted them as individuals.
- Monitor the life outcomes and progress of gay men to identify any existing inequality and take steps to address any inequalities.
Let’s explore some of these places together:
| Country (A to Z) & Overall Opinion | Reasons Why it is a Good Place to Live for Gay Men |
| Argentina Overall Opinion: An okay place for a gay man to live. | Attitudes are said to positive towards gay men. Good equality laws (same-sex marriage) and laws against discrimination. There has been a slight increase in recorded hate crimes in the past few years. |
| Austria Overall Opinion: An okay place for a gay man to live. | Attitudes are said to progressive and supportive towards gay men. Good equality laws (same-sex marriage and adoption rights) and laws against discrimination. However employment discrimination is still an issue, as is acceptance in some families and hate crime reporting is low. |
| Australia Overall Opinion: An good place for a gay man to live. | In the cities there are high levels of acceptance of gay men. Good equality laws (same-sex marriage) and laws against discrimination. However gay men may still face some stigma or indirect discrimination accessing healthcare services. |
| Belgium Overall Opinion: An excellent place for a gay man to live. | Considered one of the most accepting and friendly countries in the world for gay men. The general population have a high level of support for gay rights. At the time of writing this article has an openly gay Prime Minister and other politicians that are out. Cities are generally more accepting and friendly towards gay men than in rural areas, but this is pretty standard across the world. Good equality laws (same-sex marriage and adoption rights) and laws against discrimination. |
| Canada Overall Opinion: A poor place for a gay man to live. | Historically, Canada has been a great place for gay men to live. Accepting, supportive of equal rights. Well established gay communities. Good equality laws (same-sex marriage and adoption rights) and laws against discrimination. However recently, there has been a decline in support for gay men being seen (visability) and an increase in hate crimes targeted at gay men. |
| Finland Overall Opinion: An okay place for a gay man to live. | A good place for a gay man to live. High acceptance among the general population. ood equality laws (same-sex marriage and adoption rights). Finland does have its issues when it comes to gay men. Many hide their sexuality at work and it’s anti-discrimination laws aren’t as strong as they could be. |
| France Overall Opinion: An okay place for a gay man to live. | France is considered to be very accepting, supportive and even celebratory towards homosexuality (and therefore gay men). Historically, France decriminalized homosexuality in 1791, far earlier than many other places around the world. France has good equality laws (same-sex marriage) and strong laws against discrimination. However there are still reports of hate crimes against gay men, including violent ones and some young people who come out as gay to their families still face rejection and homelessness. |
| Germany Overall Opinion: A poor place for a gay man to live. Except if the gay man lives in Berlin, where it would be considered a good place to live. | Germany is a bit of a mixed bag for gay men. If you live in the capital, Berlin, there is an extremely high level of acceptance and a thriving gay community. However attitudes are not the same throughout Germany and vary massively region to region. Germany does have good equality laws (same-sex marriage & adoption rights) and some laws against discrimination. Germany could improve the living conditions for gay men by bringing stronger legal protection against discrimination, particularly from public institutions. |
| Greece Overall Opinion: An poor place for a gay man to live. | There was more acceptance of gay men in ancient Greece, than there is today. Attitudes towards gay men, are at best, described as mixed. There are a number of complex reasons why this is the case, but one of them is the strong presence of the Orthodox Christian religion. Greece does have good equality laws (same-sex marriage & adoption rights), as well as laws against discrimination. In Greece, it would be safest to be a gay man in a large city and one with a generally younger population. Homosexuality was decriminalised in 1951 and their hate crime legislation is considered very strong. |
| Iceland Overall Opinion: A good place for a gay man to live. | Iceland is known for being very liberal and accepting of gay men. It has even had a previous Prime Minister who was an out gay man. Iceland more than just accepting of gay men, it actively celebrates them. Gay men as fully visible in this society and even public displays of affection among gay couples is widely accepted. Legislation wise, good equality laws (same sex marriage & adoption rights) with conversion therapy being banned in 2023. The only slight concern I found about Iceland was: That some gay men choose to hide their sexuality at work, for fear of losing their job. |
| Ireland Overall Opinion: A poor place for a gay man to live. | Ireland has come along way in its attitudes and treatment of gay men. Ireland was once highly religious, gay men faced very open stigma and discrimination, both from individuals within communities and institutions. But Government surveys have found an ever increasing number of the general population have a positive and accepting attitude towards gay men. Ireland has good equality laws (same sex marriage) and anti-discrimination laws. However it still has some work to do around attitudes and culture of acceptance, before it would be on my personal list of safe places for a gay man to live. |
| Italy Overall Opinion: A very poor place for a gay man to live. | Italy is described as being ‘mixed’ in its attitudes towards gay men. Gay men do have some good laws (civil unions are allowed between same gendered partners) and discrimination laws don’t allow discrimination in employment settings. But anti-discrimination laws are described a relatively weak, when compared with neighbouring countries. The current Government’s view on gay men, the fact that a high percentage of the population are Roman Catholic (Christianity) are thought to both be reasons why Italy wouldn’t be a great place for a gay man to life. Interestingly though, it is considered safe for gay men to visit. |
| Malta Overall Opinion: A poor place for a gay man to live. | Malta’s acceptance of gay men is okay, but many gay men feel the need to hide their sexuality in the workplace for fear of discrimination. This is despite anti-discrimination laws being in place. There is good legislation that legalises gay marriage, adoption and it has banned conversion therapy. |
| Netherlands Overall Opinion: A very poor place for a gay man to live. | The Netherlands is generally accepting of gay men, however there have been reports of changes in attitudes towards gay men, worryingly from young adults. It does have anti-discrimination laws that include homosexuality. It does have same sex marriage and adoption rights. But there is a lack of legislation relating to hate crimes and hate speech. There has also been an increase in reported violence towards gay men. |
| New Zealand Overall Opinion: A good place for a gay man to live. | New Zealand is not only accepting of gay men, but celebrates them at Pride events in most cities. The Government collects data on the number of people who identify as gay men and other sexualities. This data shows a lower percentage than I would have expected, indicating that some people may not be comfortable coming out (at least to the Government). Some data suggests that gay men earn less than straight men, however it is difficult to establish from the limited data available if this is likely to be because of their sexuality or not. There could be other reasons why this is so. In terms of visibility, Gay men are visible in society. This includes in positions of power, in such roles as Politicians. Legislation wise, gay marriage is allowed. |
| Norway Overall Opinion: A extremely good place for a gay man to live. | Norway is said to be very accepting and celebratory towards gay men. Pride exists in some cities in Norway. It should be noted here, that it was one of only a few countries on this list that allows out gay men to serve in its Armed Forces. Norway is apparently often referred to as one of the most friendly nations towards gay men in the world. One of the proposed reasons for Norway’s positive attitudes and treatment of gay men is said to be because the people of Norway lack a strong religious influence on them. It has anti-discrimination laws to protect gay men, the country allows both gay marriage and adoption. Conversion therapy is legally banned. |
| Portugal Overall Opinion: A extremely good place for a gay man to live. | The people of Portugal value equality and this benefits gay men. Gay men are mostly accepted and in cities even have particular neighbourhoods and communities that gay men would feel at home and safe in. Some cities have Pride festivals/events. It should be noted here, that it was one of only a few countries on this list that allows out gay men to serve in its Armed Forces. It has anti-discrimination laws that protect gay men, including around employment and housing. Portugal legally allows same sex marriage and adoption. Hate crimes are punished under the law. Conversion therapy is also banned legally and widely condemned. Portugal was once heavily Roman Catholic (Christianity) which did mean that historically out gay men were not always treated well. I was unable to find information about the visibility of gay men in society, including in positions in power. That is not to say that gay men are not visible in Portugal, just in my research for this blog post, I wasn’t able to find any reliable information that gave an indication either way. |
| Spain Overall Opinion: A good place for a gay man to live. | Spain is said to be accepting of gay men, celebrates them and the diversity they bring through Pride events in the cities. The population of rural areas and older population of Spain are said to be less accepting of gay men, than the general population. Anti-discrimination laws exist to protect gay men. Same sex marriage and adoption are both legalised. It is another one of only a few countries on this list that allowed out gay men to serve in its Armed Forces. However, there are reports of gay men being harassed and discriminated against by some institutions, sadly including the Police. It is worth being aware that Spain’s main religion is Roman Catholicism (Christianity), however the number of people practicing this religion and adhering to its strict anti-gay men beliefs has significantly declined in recent decades. |
| Switzerland Overall Opinion: A very good place for a gay man to live. | Switzerland’s people are generally accepting of gay men, but more so in the cities than rural places. Episodes of violence towards gay men are said to be exceptionally rare. Laws protect gay men against discrimination, allow same sex marriage and adoption. Out gay men to serve in its Armed Forces. In Switzerland, they have gay civil rights organisations and several religious groups have expressed their support for equal rights for gay men. However the country is still to have an specific legal protections for gay men in the work environment, possibly instead relying on the general population’s positive and supportive attitudes towards gay men. Switzerland has not yet banned conversion therapy legally. No information could be found related to visibility of gay men or how insitutitions and companies treat gay men. This should not be taken as gay men are treated positively or negatively by these organisations, just that no information could be found regarding these during research for this blog post. |
| UK Overall Opinion: A very good place for a gay man to live. | The UK’s population is generally very accepting of gay men. In cities, the diversity gay men bring to society is celebrated through Pride events. The UK has civil rights organisations such as Stonewall. It also has specific charities that support gay men. The UK laws allows same sex marriage and adoption. There are legal protections for gay men from discrimination because of their sexuality in all settings. Out gay men to serve in its Armed Forces. The UK is sadly yet to legally ban conversion therapy or make the practice a crime. The Government collects data around the number of gay men as a percentage of the population, although this number was lower than expected. This indicates that some gay men may still be reluctant to tell the Government of their sexuality. Government data also suggests an increased risk of gay men experiencing mental illness and having poorer health outcomes than their straight counterparts. The has been an increase of reported hate crimes against gay men in recent years. Although it is impossible to tell whether this is due to an increase in reporting, which would indicate an increase in trust in the Police (historically homophobic) by gay men or as a result of increased hate crimes occurring. Gay men are visible in all walks of life, including media, politics and TV shows. However gay men are significantly under represented in some walks of life, such as professional sports. You can learn more about specific visible gay men in my article Influential UK Gay Men available here. |
A really good online resource is: Rainbow Map. It lets you see visually the safest and best places for LGBT people to live, which includes gay men.
Please note that the table above has been completed with research online. I have tried to make it as accurate as possible, but there could possibly be errors. I have not visited a lot of these countries and can’t confirm firsthand the information provided in the table.
If you’ve spotted an error in the information provided in the table, please leave a comment below to let me and others know. That way, any gay man who comes across this article, looking for a safer and better place to live has as much accurate information as possible. Thank you. If you enjoyed this blog post, you might enjoy my Influential UK Gay Men article which is available as a free download here.
Write soon,
Antony
