A super majority (77%) of Spanish teens
support gay marriage.
Spain legalized marriage between
members of the same sex in 2005 over the loud objections of the
Catholic Church.
Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero, who is
running for a third consecutive term in early 2012, has
said he's proud of the legislation.
At a recent public mass, the
church urged Spaniards to embrace conservative candidate Mariano
Rajoy, who has pledged to “change” the law.
A recent survey released by the
Institute for Youth (Instituto de Juventud) found widespread support
for gay rights among teens, El
Mundo reported.
Eighty-six percent of those surveyed
between the ages of 15 and 19 said they believe it's OK to talk about
sexual minorities, and a large majority accept gay relationships,
although with slightly greater acceptance of lesbian couples (84%)
over male gay couples (81%).
A large majority (74%) also accept
transgender adults and 54% say they have gay friends.
But most still believe it would be
difficult for a gay teen to come out to his or her parents (father,
67%, mother, 52%).
“Youth has normalized sexual
diversity and rejected sexual discrimination, but for gay teens it is
not easy being out in school,” warned Antonio Poveda, president of
the gay rights group Federacion Estatal de Lesbianas, Gais,
Transexuales y Bisexuales (FELGTB), citing an increase in anti-gay
bullying.