Barriers to owning a home are the biggest concern of SG’s LGBTQ+ community —survey

SINGAPORE: A new survey from Pink Dot and Milieu Insight has revealed the three most pressing concerns that the youth in Singapore face today are barriers to owning a home, barriers to starting a family, and bullying and harassment.

A thousand Singaporeans between the ages of 16 and 26 (Gen Z) and 27 and 34 (Millennials) were surveyed. The survey showed that among LGBTQ+ in particular, home ownership is the top concern for nearly one-third, or 31 per cent, of the respondents.

The results of the survey were released in the wake of announcements during last month’s National Day Rally, one year after the repeal of Section 377A of the Penal Code, a law from Singapore’s colonial days that criminalized intimate acts between gay men.

Pink Dot noted in a press release that the survey’s respondents are both LGBTQ+ and non-LGBTQ+ youths.

Here are some of the key findings:

• Only 36 per cent of respondents said that in general, Singapore is a livable city for LGBTQ+ individuals.
• Six in 10 believe that the LGBTQ+ community still experiences discrimination in Singapore, and among them, only 11 per cent believe that efforts to address this have been sufficient.
• Eighty-four per cent said that the government has the most important role in addressing the discrimination experienced by the LGBTQ+ community.

Pink Dot SG spokesperson Clement Tan said, “With the repeal of Section 377A marking the beginning of a new chapter, the views of youths in Singapore are more important than ever in shaping what’s next for the queer community in Singapore.

We see a lot of concern around bread-and-butter issues like barriers to homeownership, particularly by respondents who identify as LGBTQ+. In this context, the government’s recent review of housing policy is overdue.

Affordable housing is a gap which needs to be plugged for LGBTQ+ people who face many challenges and structural constraints in obtaining housing in Singapore. We welcome the steps taken towards a more inclusive and equitable public housing system, and hope to see further changes which align with the diverse needs and aspirations of young Singaporeans.

Everyone should have a place they are proud to call home, even those whose families do not conform to the state-sanctioned nuclear family.”

/TISG

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