A new study conducted by Money.co.uk has concluded that Dublin is the 5th most accepting city in the world for LGBTQ+ people. Cities were evaluated using a worldwide indicator sourced from Social Progress relating to LGBTQ+ acceptance levels, along with determining how many queer bars and clubs per 100,000 people there are in the area, and the average rating of these establishments.

Dublin scored 9.1/10 in its evaluation, earning it a top-five placement in the list of 20. The research determined that our fair city is a great place to live or travel for LGBTQ+ people “if you want to feel welcomed and free to be yourself.” Although it recognised that there were few queer venues per 100,000 people (just 0.2), the average rating of The George, Street 66 and Panti Bar on TripAdvisor is 4.3 – a testament to our great establishments.

I am proud to fly the flag on @MansionHouseDub to mark International Transgender Day of Visibility to recognise the resilience and accomplishments of the transgender community. pic.twitter.com/QxT3ZDE2Pf

— Lord Mayor of Dublin (@LordMayorDublin) March 31, 2022

Finishing in first place on the list was Reykjavik, Iceland, scoring 10/10 against the study’s criteria. Amsterdam took the runner-up spot, followed by its fellow Dutch city Rotterdam, and then gay haven San Francisco in fourth place. 

Finishing below Dublin in the top 10 of accepting cities was Brussels in sixth place, Edinburgh in seventh, Cardiff in eighth, Glasgow in ninth, and Madrid in tenth. Somewhat surprisingly, Los Angeles only managed to secure the 16th place on the list, while the English capital of London, renowned for being a queer hotspot, came in at number 18. New York City, Brighton and Berlin all failed to make the shortlist despite their reputations.

“Ireland’s just become so much better a place, so much more welcoming, so much more diverse, so much more tolerant,” Tánaiste Leo Varadkar said in a recent interview with Newstalk.

“I think we forget how oppressive it was as recently as 2000 where people had such fixed views and judgements about how men should behave and how women should behave, what people should do and how they should live their lives and that’s changed so fundamentally.

“But [it’s] something we certainly can’t take for granted,” he continued.

“We should remember – imperfect as we are – what a beacon we are for liberty in Europe – in the European Union in particular.”

Imperfect is certainly the keyword in Varadkar’s quote, and while Dublin is recognised for its accepting nature, it must be remembered that there is still a way to go before LGBTQ+ people are seen as fully equal and safe in society.

A stark reminder of this was on April 10, when a gay man was verbally and physically attacked on the streets of our capital city, not far from The George bar. Following the assault, the victim stated: “We’ve come a long way but still have such a long way to go in terms of equality.”

Shocked and appalled that an assault of this natured occurred in our capital city. Will discuss with Helen McEntee re Garda presence on our street and new hate crime laws. Sorry about what happened. Wishing you a swift recovery https://t.co/Mj4mJuyDsV

— Leo Varadkar (@LeoVaradkar) April 11, 2022

Speaking to GCN, he later added: “Love always wins […] What happened to me could happen to any of your LGBTQ+ family or friends so it’s important to be safe but also continue to always be proud!”

The full list of Money.co.uk’s top 20 most accepting cities for LGBTQ+ people in the world is as follows:

1. Reykjavik, Iceland
2. Amsterdam, Netherlands
3. Rotterdam, Netherlands
4. San Francisco, USA
5. Dublin, Ireland
6. Brussels, Belgium
7. Edinburgh, UK
8. Cardiff, UK
9. Glasgow, UK
10. Madrid, Spain
11. Boston, USA
12. Seattle, USA
13. Lisbon, Portugal
14. Helsinki, Finland
15. Frankfurt, Germany
16. Los Angeles, USA
17. Chicago, USA
18. London, UK
19. Munich, Germany
20. Copenhagen, Denmark