With Kamala Harris poised to pick a possible Jewish or gay running mate, we stop to ponder if these United States are as diverse as our ‘melting pot’ population

New York, N.Y. John Kennedy was the first Roman Catholic president, being accused by detractors as being more loyal to the Pope than to the Constitution. Barack Obama was the first multi-racial Black president who detractors claimed was not ‘Born in the U.S.A.’ Kamala Harris has been the first multi-racial Black Vice President with the nation’s first Jewish spouse, Doug Emhoff, as Second Gentleman.

LGBTQ+ Americans

Pete Buttigieg is the first openly gay federal official to be confirmed to a cabinet position, specifically as Secretary of Transportation. Internationally, 7% of people answer surveys to identify as LGBTQ+.

The U.S., the Philippines, and Israel top the list, each with 11% of adults identifying as LGBT+. Thailand and Canada follow closely, each with 10%, while Sweden, Brazil, and Australia report 9% of their populations as LGBT+.

Predictably, surveys highlight substantial variations in LGBT+ identification across different age groups within the U.S. For instance, 20% of Gen Z individuals identify as LGBT+, compared to 11% of Millennials, 6% of Gen Xers, and 5% of Baby Boomers. This age-based disparity underscores evolving trends in LGBT+ identification and acceptance over time.

Roman Catholic Americans

About 24% of Americans identify as Catholic. Joe Biden is Catholic. The https://stewardshipreport.org/wiki/vatican/ is no longer seen as a threat as some suggested it could be when JFK first ran in 1960.

Jewish Americans

As mentioned, Kamala Harris’ husband Doug Emhoff is Jewish, the first Second Gentleman we have ever had.

Jewish Senators can be counted on one hand: our friend Richard Blumenthal (CT), Ben Cardin (MD), Jacky Rosen (NV), our own Senator, Chuck Schumer (NY), and our progressive Brooklyn native in New England, the iconic Bernie Sanders (VT). But that is still 5%. About 2% of America is Jewish, so this checks.

Jewish governors, incidentally, make up 3% of American governors: Jared Polis (CO), J.B. Pritzker (IL), and Josh Shapiro (PA)]. If Kamala Harris picks Josh Shapiro as her running mate, this would be the first Jewish V.P. Candidate in our nation’s history.

Other Religious Minorities in the U.S.

Mormons constitute about 2% of the U.S. population, while Jehovah’s Witnesses, Buddhists, Hindus, and Muslims are each about 1% of our population.

Multi-racial Americans

More than 10% of our population are multi-racial. Barack Obama’s parents were American white and Kenyan (Ann Dunham/ Barack Obama Sr.), while Kamala Harris’ parents are Indian and Jamaican (Shyamala Gopalan/Donald Harris). Interestingly, both sets of parents met in grad school).

The next election will answer our question.

We are either balanced and tremendously diverse with a Harris White House or taking a century or more step backwards (no insult intended to Abraham Lincoln) if we suffer a second Trump White House. Until November 7th, it is anyone’s guess.

“Make America Great Again” is a dog-whistle for “Make America White Again.” The balance of Washington and by extension the world is really 50-50. May light triumph over darkness.

#LGBTStats, #GlobalLGBTData, #LGBTInNumbers, #GenerationalTrends, #DiversityAcrossCountries

Tags: LGBT+ Identification, Global Survey, Sexual Orientation Data, Generational Differences, Kamala Harris, Josh Shapiro, Jewish VP Candidate, 2024 Election, Diversity in Politics