Dispelling the myth of gay affluence

Cameron (left) and Mitchell are a well-off gay couple raising an adopted daughter on the sitcom "Modern Family," but a new Williams Institute study shows that members of the LGB community are more likely to be poor. As poverty rates for virtually every demographic group increased during the recent recession, lesbian, gay and bisexual Americans are more likely to be poor than heterosexual people, according to a new nationwide study by researchers at the Williams Institute at the UCLA School of Law. These findings counteract the myth of gay affluence, perpetuated by gay characters on sitcoms like ABC's "Modern Family" — Mitchell is a successful lawyer and his partner Cameron is a professional party clown and they live in a nice house in suburban Los Angeles. While these pop-culture portrayals have helped bring lesbians and gays into the mainstream, they have also created a misperception among many that same-sex couples and individuals are financially well-off. "The gay family on 'Modern Family,' if it were to truly represent the characteristics of a gay couple most likely to be raising children, would be a black, female same-sex couple living in Mississippi ," said Laura Durso, co-author of the recently released study, " New Patterns of Poverty in the Lesbian, Gay and Bisexual Community ," and a researcher at the Williams Institute. The Williams Institute is a think tank dedicated to research on sexual orientation and gender identity law and public policy. The demographic characteristics of the family Durso described would also put it among the most vulnerable to poverty.