A new survey confirms that a record number—nearly half—of Gen Z youth are identifying with a sexual orientation other than “fully straight.” The survey joins a growing number of studies demonstrating the rising acceptance of LGBTQ+ identities and willingness to be out and proud at younger ages.

Commissioned by condom and sex toy brand Durex, the Global Sex Survey interviewed 29,000 adults across 36 countries. 44% of survey participants aged 18 to 24 identified as “not fully straight.”

Coinciding with the growing number of out LGBTQ+ people, support for same-sex relationships has increased as well. The number of survey respondents who say that it’s acceptable to have a same-sex partner has gone up 34% since 2006.

Breaking that number down by country, however, shows that there’s still room to grow. 69% of respondents in the Netherlands and Spain support same-sex relationships, whereas only 66% of UK respondents do.

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The fact that Gen Z is not only more likely to accept queer people but to be queer themselves has been demonstrated time and again. Earlier this year, a survey from the Public Religion Research Institute found that Gen Z were more likely to be queer than Republican. Specifically, 28% of Gen Z identify along the LGBTQ+ spectrum whereas only 21% identify as Republican.

As for which letter of the alphabet mafia is the most prevalent, a survey by Gallup found that—in America, at least—most LGBTQ+ people identify as bisexual. Overall, the percentage of people identifying as LGBTQ+ has more than doubled since Gallup began the survey in 2012.

While the rise in out queer people is a promising sign of progress, that increased visibility has also given bigots a target. A recent poll from YouGov found that nearly half of LGBTQ+ ages 16 to 24 have experienced bullying over their sexual orientation and 25% over their gender identity.

In this sense, Gen Z might not represent the haven for equality and acceptance we’re all hoping for. But it speaks to the resilience of queer youth today that they keep coming out in record numbers in spite of the bullying and hatred.

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