DETROIT — As politicians battle over gay rights in statehouses across the country, it's difficult to know exactly how many people even identify as LGBTQ — and experts say the missing data could be crucial.
That's because the decennial U.S. census — the gold standard of who exactly makes up the U.S. population — does not ask about sexual orientation or gender identity beyond a strict male/female binary.
There are estimates. Experts at nonprofits estimated in 2020 that there are more than 13 million LGBTQ people nationwide, but estimates can vary wildly based on methodology and likely undercount the total population.
