Ah yes, it’s official apparently. The LGBTIQA+ community officially exists in Australia – sort of!

That’s an undeniable fact according to the ABC which ran a headline saying “nearly one in 20 Australians identifies as LGBTQIA+, new ABS data reveals” today on its website. No ‘ifs’, buts’ or ‘maybe’ about it. That’s data! You can’t argue with that.

What a revelation by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) with the census based confirmation that more than 900,000 Aussies are directly represented by the rainbow flag. This information will inform so much growth for us as a society and ensure services are available to all Aussies, bridging many gaps of inequality.

*Chants* They’re here! They’re queer! Get used to it! *Ends chants*

That’s roughly 4.5% of the Australian population, or as ABS’s head of health statistics, Robert Long, put it, “that’s almost the combined population of the ACT and Tasmania”.

Problem is, I don’t remember being asked if I identified as part of the LGBTQIA+ community when I filled out my census form a couple of years back. In fact, wasn’t there a debate recently about whether to have such identity questions in the 2026 census, and Labor went all Jack Sparrow and jumped ship until it got backlash.

So why doe the LGBTIQA+ community want to be counted anyways? Personally, I think my census form is an invasion of my privacy but that’s probably years of social media consumption mascaraing as ideologies in my head brain.

Skip to some Googling later, and the Australian Human Rights Commission even called for a meaningful count of the LGBTQIA+ community citing public disparities with health services.

“For LGBTIQA+ people, who face significant health disparities compared to the heterosexual and cisgender population, accurate population data would ensure that informed decisions can be made when investing in health and mental health services,” Australia’s Sex Discrimination Commissioner Dr Anna Cody said.

“It is a matter of practical, effective policy,”

But if the ABS already has a clear snapshot of the LGBTQIA+ community down under, we can start investing properly into services, policies and public amenities right?

Well, no, because that 4.5% of the population being LGBTQIA+ wasn’t fact, it was basically a guess – or rather as Deadpool would put it, a “wishful guess” by ABS experts.

In a media release published on the ABS website today (December 19, 2024), it said the data revealed was simply an “experimental estimates of LGBTI+ populations” using data it collected from 45,000 people. So much like how Trump had no chance (according to the polls) of winning the 2016 US Presidential Election, this “wishful guess” could be complete out and simply praying for more than there are.

The media notes on that media release also warns readers taking the data completely literally noting there are multiple ways it could be incorrect. Its a step, not the answer and definitely not the “reveal”.

“The estimates and characteristics in this analysis are subject to limitations and error due to, for example, sample size and non-sampling error,” it said.

“These data (sic) are not population benchmarks and should be used with caution.”

Now, don’t get me wrong. The people coming up with this number are top of their game. The smartest of the smart when it comes to stats so they’re probably on the money, but politically that means fuck all when trying to get Government money to fund much needed services and polices to protect and provide for the LGBTI+ community. Notably for conservative politicians, this is the white elephant in the room that they can feed to win the vote of those with outdated ideologies accusing the ABS of being “woke” for its guess.

And that’s probably why the Albanese Labor Federal Government made a last minute “Yeah, Nah!” originally on a proposal to include questions about sexuality and gender diversity on the upcoming 2026 census.

Deputy Australian Prime Minister Richard Donald Marles said, at the time, the decision to abandon its promise to count the LGBTI+ community was out of concern for social cohesion.

“We are doing that because we do not want to open up divisive debates in the community now,” he said.

Following this “logic” and people being like, “WTF Labor”, the Government backflipped on that decision and left it up to the ABS to come up with some questions on gender and sexual orientation (for people aged 16 and older).

So, in a nut shell its great and all that the ABS has guessed that more than 900,000 people in Australia identify as part of the LGBTI+ community, but that means fuck all politically until the 2026 census and the actual count happens.

Then, the LGBTI+ community won’t be as invisible when it comes to policy and proper investment.