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I'd agree that Wilton Manors is def a pretty close-knit LGBT community. Albeit it can be skew heavily on the older side, however it still a decent "gayborhood" if you're gay or lesbian-ish or a little bit of both.
I've been to OKC, and as a gay man, I found it to be very accepting and welcoming.
However, I did hear some comments that, while not hateful, did seem a little naive.
I was talking to one man who said, "I don't have a problem gay people. To me, gay couples are just like straight couples: in every relationship there needs to be a man and there needs to be a woman. That way everyone knows what they're supposed to do."
Another man said, "I don't have a problem with lesbians fighting the army. Some lesbians are more men than most men are."
In fact, I think whenever a new acquaintance found out I was gay, the response was always, "I don't have a problem with gay people..."
The fact that people kept on needing to reassure themselves that they're not bigoted implies that there may be some tensions still bubbling beneath the surface. Perhaps there's still some bad homophobia in OKC that isn't apparent to a typical visitor.
For the record, I've only been called a f----t twice in my life. Both instances were in Syracuse, New York, a blue state.
I disagree. In most cases they probably don't know how to respond and just want to assure you they don't care. You'd be surprised how many people do not have any gay friends, and not by choice just based on their surroundings.
I felt that Lawrence, KS had a strong gay community when I lived there. Its close-knit in the sense that its a proportionally large population in a small-ish town.
According to Wikipedia New York, LA, Chicago, SF, and Phoenix have the largest LGBT communities in absolute number and SF, Seattle, Atlanta, Minneapolis, and Boston have the largest LGBT communities per capita, but bigger does not always mean better.
What city has the most close-knit LGBT community?
Are there any cities that lack a sense of community despite having many LGBT people?
Are there any smaller cities that are often overlooked?
Consider:
Thriving gayborhood(s)
Visible LGBT-owned businesses
Visible LGBT political groups
LGBT political groups focused on non-LGBT issues too
LGBT-friendly places of worship
Access to healthcare
Bars that are engaged with their communities
Numerous social groups (bowling leagues, book clubs, softball)
Numerous community events (parades, street fairs, rodeos, roller derbies)
Community publications
Louisville. For better or for worse. You run into the same people over and over again. I'm not used to that coming from LA where you can go days or weeks or months and not recognize a single person out in public unless you meet up with a friend. I prefer that anonymity. But all the gays here basically know each other which is strange to me lol. I assume that's "close knit" and it's not my cup of tea haha. The customers know the bartenders. The customers almost all know each other. I avoid a lot of that though, and I always have. I think I went out in West Hollywood two times maybe? But Louisville's size is what helps the gay community be so close knit. It's a big enough city that nearly every amenity is available and that it is very liberal, but it's small enough that the LGBT community knows each other and kinda looks out for each other.
The Highlands and NuLu are both quite hipster and gay at the same time. The Highlands is the more established neighborhood. NuLu, as the name suggests, is a newer up and coming neighborhood.
I'm not sure about the businesses and stuff, but there are quite a few gays bars or at least gay friendly bars. I'm sure there are other things like restaurants and stores and local businesses owned by gays as well, but I just don't know about them. Honestly, the gay community is so well accepted in the east end of Louisville that there doesn't really need to be an obvious signal that a business is owned by someone in the LGBT group.
Idk about groups.
Idk about religion because I'm a non-practicing Jew, but I'm sure there has to be at least one church in the Highlands that is very welcoming of gays. There are some in the neighborhood so I'd be surprised if they weren't gay friendly.
Healthcare? We have a lot of hospitals? Unless you mean gay-specific clinics like Magnet in SF. None that I know of, but I just use campus health so...lol
The bars definitely are involved with the Highlands neighborhood.
Social groups I'm not sure of since I don't participate. But I feel like most cities have gay softball or kickball or something leagues.
We have two pride parades now. Not sure why or how, but we do lol.
Louisville. For better or for worse. You run into the same people over and over again. I'm not used to that coming from LA where you can go days or weeks or months and not recognize a single person out in public unless you meet up with a friend. I prefer that anonymity. But all the gays here basically know each other which is strange to me lol. I assume that's "close knit" and it's not my cup of tea haha. The customers know the bartenders. The customers almost all know each other. I avoid a lot of that though, and I always have. I think I went out in West Hollywood two times maybe? But Louisville's size is what helps the gay community be so close knit. It's a big enough city that nearly every amenity is available and that it is very liberal, but it's small enough that the LGBT community knows each other and kinda looks out for each other.
The Highlands and NuLu are both quite hipster and gay at the same time. The Highlands is the more established neighborhood. NuLu, as the name suggests, is a newer up and coming neighborhood.
I'm not sure about the businesses and stuff, but there are quite a few gays bars or at least gay friendly bars. I'm sure there are other things like restaurants and stores and local businesses owned by gays as well, but I just don't know about them. Honestly, the gay community is so well accepted in the east end of Louisville that there doesn't really need to be an obvious signal that a business is owned by someone in the LGBT group.
Idk about groups.
Idk about religion because I'm a non-practicing Jew, but I'm sure there has to be at least one church in the Highlands that is very welcoming of gays. There are some in the neighborhood so I'd be surprised if they weren't gay friendly.
Healthcare? We have a lot of hospitals? Unless you mean gay-specific clinics like Magnet in SF. None that I know of, but I just use campus health so...lol
The bars definitely are involved with the Highlands neighborhood.
Social groups I'm not sure of since I don't participate. But I feel like most cities have gay softball or kickball or something leagues.
We have two pride parades now. Not sure why or how, but we do lol.
Community publications I'm not sure about.
Seems pretty accurate....but outside Miami, NYC, LA, etc....wouldnt you say that most gay people in the "scene" and at the bars several times a week "know" each other?
The same can be said of the straight scene, even in big cities! I would see the same people over and over when I would go out in Lakeview and Lincoln Park in Chicago!
That said, the gay community in Louisville is very very tight, and they are also very welcoming of straight and even married folks like myself. I have several gay friends, and we even go to great drag shows here in Louisville sometime!
Seems pretty accurate....but outside Miami, NYC, LA, etc....wouldnt you say that most gay people in the "scene" and at the bars several times a week "know" each other?
The same can be said of the straight scene, even in big cities! I would see the same people over and over when I would go out in Lakeview and Lincoln Park in Chicago!
That said, the gay community in Louisville is very very tight, and they are also very welcoming of straight and even married folks like myself. I have several gay friends, and we even go to great drag shows here in Louisville sometime!
Yeah I guess because I came from LA, it's just strange to me when people know each other all the time out in public lol
I've never been to the gay clubs anywhere except LA, SF, and NYC. LA and SF don't know each other. LA is massive of course. SF is small itself, but the gay community from the Central Valley and all the international tourists keep the scene different. NYC I've only been out twice with a close friend.
But yeah, the gay community here is much friendlier to outsiders and non-LGBT than LA and SF. Both accept straight females, but neither accepts the straight bros and married couples like Louisville does, especially Nowhere Bar.
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haha. The customers know the bartenders. The customers almost all know each other. I avoid a lot of that though, and I always have. I think I went out in West Hollywood two times maybe? But Louisville's size is what helps the gay community be so close knit. It's a big enough city that nearly every amenity is available and that it is very liberal, but it's small enough that the LGBT community knows each other and kinda looks out for each other.
