Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, is a beautiful city. It has all of the charm of a city in New England, yet it also has the history of the steel industry and an overall industrial feel to it that’s both contradictory and yet oddly complimentary to the natural beauty of the area. The city is also home to a number of LGBT people and several major advocacy groups. Moving to Pittsburgh can be a great move, but you do need to know what you’re getting into.
Many LGBT Groups
There are a number of great LGBT groups in Pittsburgh, including the Garden of Peace Project, Dream of Hope, New Voices Pittsburgh, and the Gay, Lesbian, and Straight Education Network. All of these groups have worked together on various projects, including Pittsburgh Pride events. If you move to the city, you’re sure to find a group or community in which you feel at home, and you’ll make some great friends, too. Your gay or lesbian realtor may be able to give you more information about some or all of these groups.
Early Rights
Pittsburgh and the state of Pennsylvania were actually fairly early in same-sex rights. For example, the state repealed its sodomy laws between 1972 and 1980, and same-sex marriage became legal in May of 2014. Much of the state is very open to LGBT people, and Pittsburgh is no exception to that. Parts of the city, especially the East End, tend to be very welcoming and open. Some people fly rainbow flags from their house or have bumper stickers on their cars and have no worries about it. Other LGBT neighborhoods include Friendship, Shadyside, and Squirrel Hill. There are also a number of gay bars and LGBT-owned businesses throughout the city, including the downtown area.
Where the State Stands
If you’re moving to Pittsburgh, you probably want to know about your rights there. Second-parent adoption is legal, and same-sex couples can jointly adopt. Due to a technical issue, the state does not have any hate crime law that covers LGBT individuals. However, attempts have been made to change that.
As far as discrimination goes, there’s no law protecting LGBT people from workplace discrimination, but the state was the first in which state LGBT employees were protected—the governor issued an executive order back in 1975. Gender identity was added to the order in 2003.
While the lack of hate crime protection is disappointing, Pittsburgh is still a great place to move to. It’s a welcoming city with many LGBT neighborhoods.