South Carolina Ranks as 2nd Worst State for LGBTQ+ Equality

The 2023 State LGBTQ+ Business Climate Index released by Out Leadership finds “the state of LGBTQ+ access and equality in the U.S. is regressing,” signaling “increasing polarization across the country in political and cultural attitudes towards the LGBTQ+ community.”

“The State LGBTQ+ Business Climate Index ranks each state and applies a numeric score out of 100 for how LGBTQ+ people experience living, working, building a family and building a life in each state,” said Jane Barry-Moran, Managing Director, Research & Programs, Out Leadership. “We use data from our partners at the Williams institute and LGBTMAP (Measurement advancement project) as well as our own research to measure lived experience for LGBTQ+ people in each state.”

In the 2023 Index, Arkansas fell four slots to #50 with an overall score of 32.00 out of 100.  South Carolina, who earned a score of 32.50 out of 100, ranks 49^th in the country for the worst states for LGBTQ+ equality. Last year, Arkansas ranked #46 with a total score of 35.93 while South Carolina ranked #50 with a score of 22.63.

Top 5 states for LGBTQ+ equality

1) New York – 93.67

2) Connecticut – 93.27

3) Massachusetts – 92.67

4) New Jersey – 90.00

5) Colorado – 88.67

Worst 5 states for LGBTQ+ equality

46) South Dakota — 34.97

47) Tennessee – 34.40

48) Louisiana – 33.50

49) South Carolina – 32.50

50) Arkansas – 32.00