LGBT

Open minded. Vibrant. Friendly. Safe. Forward-thinking. However you define it, Minneapolis Saint Paul is an excellent place to live for the LGBT community. We like to say it’s halfway between LA and New York, and all the way out of the closet.

Minneapolis Saint Paul has the highest percentage LGBT population of any city in the U.S. outside San Francisco. According to the 2000 Census, it also possesses the 3rd largest concentration of gay and lesbian couples. Advancements in LGBT legislation, plus its cultural and entertainment assets, contribute to making Minneapolis Saint Paul a popular place to visit and live.

A PROGRESSIVE CITY
Through a proven history of leadership in LGBT legislation, Minneapolis Saint Paul gained a reputation as a strong LGBT community after it became one of the first areas in the U.S. to protect LGBT rights. In 1974, the Minneapolis City Council amended an ordinance to cover discrimination based on sexual preference. Since 1991, same-sex couples in Minneapolis could register as domestic partners at City Hall, thus recognizing the relationship. In 2002, Minneapolis enacted the Equal Benefits Ordinance requiring certain contractors with the city to offer domestic partner benefits.

More than 100 Minnesota businesses extend domestic partner benefits to employees including these companies:

AN INVITING COMMUNITY
While pockets of gay communities exist here, they are not exclusively gay. It’s what makes our metro area unique: the integration of the gay population in the overall community. The hip energy in Uptown welcomes the young creative crowd. The Chain of Lakes attracts LGBT visitors. Neighborhoods and communities are important in the culturally diverse area of South Minneapolis, home to many LGBT families. The Northeast neighborhood is a booming arts district and a strong LGBT area.

ORGANIZING FOR CHANGE
Several leading LGBT organizations call Minneapolis Saint Paul home, including:

  • Rainbow Families: One of the largest regional LGBT organizations in the country, it provides services to more than 2,000 families in the upper Midwest, hosts an annual conference and produces publications.
  • OutFront Minnesota: Minnesota’s largest LGBT organization, it’s the only one that represents the LGBT community on a full-time basis at the Minnesota Legislature.
  • District 202: LGBT youth can find their place at this, the first and only permanent space in Minnesota by and for LGBT youth.

LEADERS IN THE SPOTLIGHT Many well-known local LGBT residents left their mark by influencing legislation and providing a positive image for the LGBT community. Here are just a few:

  • Native Minnesotan Miss Richfield 1981 is a creative artist and local celebrity and now a well-known national figure
  • Susan Kimberly (born Bob Sylvester) was former president of Saint Paul City Council and influential in passing the first gay rights law in the U.S. in 1993
  • Polar explorer Ann Bancroft was the first woman to travel across ice to the North Pole and to travel east to west across Greenland on skis
  • 3 openly gay men sit on the Minneapolis City Council: Scott Benson, Robert Lilligren and Gary Schiff. Minnesota State Senator Paul Koering is another notable gay.

LGBT EVENTS FOR EVERY SEASON

 


 

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