The Asian American Federation of New York, a nonprofit leadership organization, presented these and other findings in a report on a custom analysis of recently released Census 2000 data on Asian same-sex households in the three metropolitan areas with the most such households. Commissioned by the C.J. Huang Foundation, the report was prepared by the Federation�s Census Information Center (CIC), a source of census data and analysis affiliated with the U.S. Census Bureau. The document is the first publicly accessible report with socioeconomic details on gays and lesbians of any race. It is available on the CIC�s Web site at www.aafny.org/cic/.

"This census report offers important insight on the Asian Pacific American gay and lesbian population, which has received little research attention," Cao K. O, executive director of the New York-based Asian American Federation, said at a briefing in New York. "We are sharing our findings to provide a foundation for community service planning, public discussion and comprehensive research, in line with our broader goal of expanding understanding of Asian American population characteristics."

O added: "Our analysis revealed a distinct set of demographic features that differentiate Asian American same-sex household residents from individuals living in non-Asian gay and lesbian households. The key traits for Asian gays and lesbians are lower income, less English ability, less education, higher percentages of immigrants, and a greater presence of children in the home."

The Federation�s report focuses on the three metropolitan areas that together comprised nearly half of the nationwide Asian gay and lesbian household population in 2000. The analysis was based on responses of those who reported living with unmarried same-sex partners - the only measure of the U.S. gay and lesbian population in Census 2000, which did not inquire directly about sexual orientation or collect information on gay and lesbian individuals not living with partners.

Major socioeconomic findings for the top three metropolitan areas in 2000 include the following:

• Median incomes for Asian same-sex households generally were lower than for non-Asian gay and lesbian households. For example, in New York, median income for Asian gay and lesbian households was $55,500 a year, compared with $69,300 for non-Asian same-sex households.



• Within the Asian same-sex population, gay partners earned considerably more than lesbian partners. The widest variation occurred in Los Angeles, where the median income for male households was $81,000 - 56 percent more than $51,900 for female households.



• Poverty, or low income, as gauged by annual household income of less than $25,000, was more common among Asian same-sex households than among non-Asian gay and lesbian households.



• Among Asian same-sex partners, women generally were more likely to have low income than men. For instance, in New York, 26 percent of female households - more than double the 11 percent rate for male households - earned less than $25,000.



• Language barriers were higher for Asian same-sex partners than for non-Asian gays and lesbians. The incidence of "Limited English Proficiency" (defined as speaking English "not well" or "not at all") for Asian gay and lesbian partners was as high as 23 percent, in Los Angeles, where 13 percent of non-Asian same-sex partners fit this category. Among same-sex partners in New York and San Francisco, limited English ability was more than twice as common for Asians as for non-Asians.



• Asian gay and lesbian partners had less education than non-Asian same-sex partners in New York and San Francisco. For instance, among same-sex partners in New York, 26 percent of Asians (compared with 18 percent of non-Asians) lacked a high school diploma, while 39 percent of Asians (short of 43 percent of non-Asians) had higher education.



• The vast majority of Asian gay and lesbian partners were immigrants, most of whom had entered the United States in 1980 or later. Among same-sex partners, percentages of foreign-born Asians ranged from almost three-quarters (74 percent) in San Francisco to 82 percent in New York and 83 percent in Los Angeles - in each case, exceeding comparable local figures for non-Asians. Despite more recent immigration, foreign-born Asian gay and lesbian partners were more likely to be naturalized U.S. citizens than non-Asian gay and lesbian immigrants.



• Children were more apt to live in Asian same-sex households than in non-Asian gay and lesbian homes. Close to half of same-sex Asian partners in Los Angeles and New York (43 percent and 44 percent, respectively) reported having a child in their home - in contrast with 32 percent and 27 percent of non-Asian partners, respectively.



• Asian lesbian partners were more likely than gay partners to have children living with them in New York and San Francisco. In New York, children lived in 62 percent of female homes - more than twice the frequency of 30 percent of male households. Los Angeles presented the opposite pattern, with children in 45 percent of gay households and 42 percent of lesbian homes.

The Federation also reported these population traits of Asian same-sex partners in the three regions:

• More than half of Asian same-sex partners in each metropolitan area lived with an Asian partner.



• The predominant interracial combination for Asian same-sex partnerships was Asian/white.



• Asian gay households outnumbered Asian lesbian households in New York and San Francisco, while Los Angeles had more lesbian than gay households.

The Asian American Federation of New York is a nonprofit leadership organization that works collaboratively to meet the critical needs of Asian Americans in the New York metropolitan area. Operating since 1990, the Federation strengthens community-based health and social services capacity by supporting its 35 member agencies and other grassroots organizations; amplifies the Asian American civic voice by defining, analyzing, and advocating for policies to address key community issues; and encourages strategic, high-impact philanthropy within the Asian American community by increasing opportunities for connecting time, talent and financial resources with pressing community needs. For more information, visit www.aafny.org or call 212-344-5878.

The U.S. Census Bureau selected the Federation to operate the only Census Information Center (CIC) in the New York metropolitan area focused on serving the Asian American community. Established in 2000, the center provides census information, conducts data and policy analysis, and encourages census participation. The CIC is publishing a series of population profiles to increase understanding of the rapidly growing and diverse Asian American community.

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