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Evidence for Hope?: Mississippi Christians’ Views Toward Gay and Lesbian Equality Post Obergefell v. Hodges

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Abstract

Introduction

Despite the legalization of same-sex marriage, gay and lesbian people still lack full rights and equality in the USA. People in the USA who adhere to conservative religion and politics continue to create obstacles to full equality for gay and lesbian citizens.

Methods

Through semi-structured, qualitative interviews, I provide an exploratory look at the shifting views toward gay and lesbian equality by highlighting the stories of six Mississippi Christians’ over a 6-year period.

Results

Overall, the six Mississippi Christians who agreed to participate in a follow-up interview in 2019 all became more accepting of gay and lesbian people and more open to gay and lesbian equality in the USA to various degrees.

Conclusions

Continued social contact with gay and lesbian people, along with policy changes in the USA, led to more acceptance of gay and lesbian Americans by southern Christians.

Policy Implications

Striving to bring conservative Christians along on this journey toward more acceptance and support of gay and lesbian equality is not a futile effort. Christians who are “on-the-fence” are slowly progressing toward more acceptance. While religion may serve as a negative feature that deters the positive benefits of social contact, knowing someone who identifies as gay or lesbian remains a vital component of bringing more moderate Christians to acceptance of gay and lesbian people and rights.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Sociology and Anthropology, Georgia Southern University, PO Box 8051, Statesboro, GA, 30460, USA

    Baker A. Rogers

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  1. Baker A. Rogers
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Correspondence to Baker A. Rogers.

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Ethical Approval

This study was performed in line with the principles of the Declaration of Helsinki. Approval was granted by the Institutional Review Board at Georgia Southern University. The initial approval date was February 6, 2019 under tracking number H19185.

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Verbal informed consent was obtained prior to the interview.

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The author declares no competing interests.

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Rogers, B.A. Evidence for Hope?: Mississippi Christians’ Views Toward Gay and Lesbian Equality Post Obergefell v. Hodges. Sex Res Soc Policy 19, 483–495 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13178-021-00562-1

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