Features

MENLO PARK — Gays, lesbians and bisexuals feel more accepted by society today than a few years ago, but about the same percentage say they have experienced discrimination because of their sexual orientation. 

Nearly three-quarters of the respondents to a national survey released Tuesday said they have been victims of verbal abuse, while about one-third said they have encountered physical abuse. 

Telephone interviews with 405 randomly selected self-identified lesbians, gays and bisexuals were conducted in 15 major U.S. cities last November by the Kaiser Family Foundation. A second telephone survey with 2,283 adults was conducted to gather the general public’s feelings about gay and lesbian issues. 

Seventy-six percent of lesbians, gays and bisexuals reported they feel more accepted, as compared to a few years ago. But 74 percent say they’ve experienced prejudice and discrimination. 

Lesbians were more likely to experience discrimination — 85 percent — than gay men (76 percent) or bisexuals (60 percent). 

Seventy-four percent of lesbians, gays and bisexuals reported encountering verbal abuse, while 32 percent said they experienced physical abuse against themselves or their property because of their sexual orientation. 

Ninety percent of the lesbians, gays and bisexuals interviewed believe the government is not doing enough to protect them from discrimination, while 64 percent said more prejudice was directed toward them than blacks. 

In the general population survey, 62 percent reported they have a friend or acquaintance who is gay. That compares to 55 percent three years ago, and 24 percent in 1983. 

Sixty-four percent of the general population surveyed said they think there is more acceptance of homosexuals today than a few years ago, and 29 percent said that acceptance is good for the country. Forty-four percent said it didn’t matter either way and 23 percent said it was bad for the country. 

The margin of error for the general public survey was plus or minus 3.5 percentage points, and it was plus or minus 5.9 percent for the gay, lesbian and bisexual survey.