A Florida city ranked surprisingly highly in a global list of "sexually liberal cities," despite the state's moves to limit LGBTQ+ expression and healthcare.
The adult entertainment site Erobella ranked 41 cities around the world on the freedom of the LGBTQ+ community to "live, love and express sexuality,” according to LGBTQ+ website Queerty. The cities were ranked on 10 categories, including contraception use, how many sex shops, gay bars, and LGBTQ+ events there were, local gender recognition, anti-discrimination, and abortion access, and more.
Miami was ranked No. 10, with a total ranking of 48.1 out of 100. The South Florida city scored a perfect 100 for "sex life" (the only city to do so on the list), which includes the number of sex shops
per 100,000 people.
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Miami also scored 60 out of 100 for gay bars, LGBTQ+ and gay events, gender recognition, and anti-discrimination, and 40 out of 100 for contraception use and abortion rights. Its total score was brought down by a zero ranking under "sex work."
No. 1 on the list, by a wide margin, was Amsterdam, with a score of 69.4 out of 100. "Perfect marks on sex-work freedom and abortion rights, and the most balanced all-round profile of any city measured," Erobella said. Rounding out the top five were Vancouver, Canada; Manchester, Great Britain; Cologne, Denmark, and San Francisco.
The other U.S. cities on the list were Atlanta, Georgia, at No. 12; San Diego, California, at No. 26; Chicago, Illinois, at No. 29; New York City at No. 32; Dallas, Texas, at No. 35; and Houston, Texas, at No. 38.
Miami remains popular LGBTQ+ friendly spot in Florida
Miami, home of South Beach, has long been a popular destination for LGBTQ+ visitors. Crowds flock to the annual Pride event, the semi-official gay beaches at 12th Street Beach and Haulover Park Beach (which has a clothing-optional section), and a wide variety of entertainment, nightlife and restaurants catering to the community.
The city's visitors' bureau website proudly promotes them all, although the state's visitor site quietly dropped all mention of LGBTQ+ tourism in 2024. A separate LGBT Visitor Center in Miami Beach also talks up the town.
Every April, thousands turn out for Miami Beach Pride, a multi-day event and one of the largest Pride festivals in the world. In the past, it has featured a beauty pageant, a "Drag Me to Pride" drag show event, and a two-day festival on the beach with live musical performances.
Readers skeptical of sexually liberated list
Some readers on the popular online forum site Reddit were surprised, to say the least. "The fact florida is in there makes me question the whole article," one Redditor said. Others pointed out the inclusion of cities in Florida and Texas but not Boston, Portland, Seattle, or New York City.
Even the Florida choice was questioned, with some commenters asking why Orlando, St. Petersburg, or Tampa weren't mentioned.
The list also names multiple states and countries where transgender people are persecuted, and countries that ban gay marriage. "So as always — it’s about white gay man mostly," one commenter said.
Florida less friendly to LGTBQ+ people
In recent years, Florida legislators have passed multiple bills affecting LBGTQ+ people in the state, from bills to empower parents — which also restricted teachers from any instruction on sexual orientation or gender identity — and ban transgender people from using restrooms that match their gender identity in schools, public shelters, healthcare facilities, and government buildings. State statutes were updated to define sex as only male or female.
Health care has also been a priority, with measures to strictly limit access to gender-affirming medication, therapy, and procedures, and for healthcare providers and insurers to deny care to a patient for religious, moral, or ethical reasons.
Several of these laws have been challenged in court. One 2023 bill, SB 1438, sought to prevent children from attending "sexually explicit" performances, which critics claimed was a thinly disguised attack on drag shows and Pride events. A judge blocked it on First Amendment grounds, but an appeals court in August overturned that injunction, allowing the state to begin enforcing it. The case now heads back to a trial court in Orlando.
"In Florida, we don’t let people groom our kids," Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier said on X in response to the appeals court decision.
C. A. Bridges is a journalist for the USA TODAY Network-Florida's service journalism Connect team. You can get all of Florida’s best content directly in your inbox each weekday by signing up for the free newsletter, Florida TODAY.
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Florida city earns top 10 spot on global LGBTQ+ city ranking
