I’ve lived in Ohio my entire life and thoughout my adult life I’ve asked myself if this state is a good state to be in for a gay girl. Now, I only want to be honest with you and pull from my own experiences. If you are considering moving to Ohio (or coming out in Ohio) then you might want to keep some things in mind. Here is my experience being a lesbian in Ohio.
The state can be hot and cold.
This doesn’t just apply to the actual weather. Ohio is a swing state and in some areas, you will notice heavy conservative views while in other parts you will experience a much more liberal culture. When one thinks of Ohio they might think of this:
If you’ve ever been to the optometrist and they are measuring your vision with an autorefractor, you might see this picture. Honestly, for years I thought that picture was just the Doctor’s choice of picture that resembled Ohio. I didn’t realize this was just a picture used in autorefractors all over the country. So if that doesn’t give you an idea of what much of Ohio looks like, then I don’t know what does.
Now, Ohio isn’t all fields and farmland and corn. Although, a lot of it is indeed corn and I also shouldn’t leave out soy while we are on the topic of crops.
Anyways, I’ve never really lived in those rural parts of Ohio where farmland is vast. I’ve always lived in suburban areas outside of bigger cities. So, I can honestly say that the culture there is very different from the culture in the more southern parts of Ohio.
To put it simply, I believe that there is a lot more diversity and feelings of acceptance than I sometimes give Ohio credit for, BUT, in order to really feel that, you’ll want to be in the areas where more is happening. So, you’ll want to be in the cities or closer to them.
For example, Cleveland is basically a liberal bubble in northeastern Ohio where, just as in most cities everywhere, it is more diverse and accepting of its diversity. Being a lesbian in Ohio wouldn’t be so bad around here.
If you go to the more remote areas of Ohio where it’s mainly just land and the communities that own that land, I honestly don’t know how safe it is to be “out.” I personally tend to feel a bit uneasy when I need to travel through those areas.. Maybe I am just trying to get to central Ohio for a camping trip, but wherever I am trying to get to, it isn’t uncommon to go through towns where you feel they might be several decades behind in mindset and even in technology. It’s kind of weird to experience when you come from a busier suburban area, but from the gay perspective, I can say I would feel uneasy around some folks there.
Now, even though not all of Ohio is on board with breaking old traditions and being accepting of newer ones, I still find myself happy to live and be a lesbian in Ohio. The temperate forests and the access to so much parkland, rivers, lakes, and the like are amazing. The weather can be crazy as heck, but you get to experience all the seasons too.
Basically, when it comes down to it, in my opinion, I think Ohio can be as good a state to live in as any other state for a lesbian. It doesn’t mean it is the best. I’m sure there are other states, or at least bigger and better cities in the country that would offer much more for the community. But, Ohio is still home to me and I’m happy to have my home base here. No place is absolutely perfect, but if you are mindful of the community you are trying to find, then I feel confident that there are plenty of places in Ohio where you can feel happy, comfortable, and accepted.