Municipal Survey 2006

Introduction
RFSL’s Municipal Survey 2006 compares how LGBT friendly Sweden’s municipalities are. Only 3% of the municipalities reach an acceptable level of counteracting discrimination of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people in their day-to-day operations.

The survey is based on questionnaires to all 290 of Sweden’s municipalities, RFSL’s 28 divisions, and statistics from Statistics Sweden (SCB), The Swedish Security Service (SÄPO), and a report from The Research Group for Social and Information Studies entitled "Follow-Up of Attitudes Towards Homosexuals?".

RFSL has mapped the situation for homosexual, bisexual and transgender people in all of Sweden’s municipalities. The report examines five areas: schools, municipal operations and personnel, the LGBT community’s infrastructure, frequency of crimes with homophobic motives, and the general population’s attitude toward homosexuals.

RFSL’s goal is a society characterized by diversity and respect for people’s differences, where everyone, regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity and regardless of how they choose to express their orientation or identity, will have the same rights, obligations and possibilities to live and work.

Many LGBT people, primarily those who live in smaller towns, feel forced to move to larger cities in order to be able to live openly without having to hide parts of themselves. Prejudice and ignorance creates a social climate where people are assumed to be heterosexual and where those who fall outside of the norm are not accepted.

Knowledge about the situation for LGBT people is lacking in many municipalities. Knowledge is necessary for a municipality to be able to protect the interests of all municipal residents and employees, including homo-/bisexual and transgender people.

In order to draw attention to these issues, RFSL carried out this survey of the situation for LGBT people in all 290 of Sweden’s municipalities. The survey was conducted during the spring of 2006 by Lars Jonsson.

Counteracting discrimination of citizens must be a goal for all of Sweden’s municipalities, which have a responsibility to protect the interests of all municipal residents and employees, regardless of sexual orientation, gender identity, or how they choose to express their orientation or identity. Municipalities have a far-reaching responsibility to be forerunners in this work.

Read More
Download the files below to read more about the survey results and recommendations.

Foreword (PDF 84 kB)

Aspects Surveyed (PDF 72 kB)

Summary of Results (PDF 84 kB)

Ten Things to Do (PDF 80 kB)