Australia adds optional gender identity and sexual orientation questions to census
Summary
Australia included new optional questions about sexual orientation and gender identity in its 2024 census for the first time. These questions are for people aged 16 and older and aim to better understand the population's diversity while respecting privacy.Key Facts
- The Australian census took place on August 11, 2024, and included 66 questions.
- New optional questions ask about sexual orientation and whether a person identifies with a different gender than the one assigned at birth.
- Answer choices for sexual orientation include straight, gay or lesbian, bisexual, don’t know, prefer not to answer, or a self-described term.
- Gender identity options include man, woman, nonbinary, prefer not to answer, or another self-described term.
- These new questions are optional, similar to the question about religion that has been optional since 1911.
- The Labor Party government promised to include these questions during the 2022 election campaign.
- The government initially removed the questions in 2023 to avoid community division but reversed the decision after public and political pressure.
- Other countries like Britain, New Zealand, and Canada have already added similar questions to their censuses in recent years.
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