Seeking a Mate: Inter-Group Partnerships Among Gay Jewish Men‪.‬

ABSTRACT/RESUME While documentation and discussion of out-marriage rates among heterosexual Jews is widespread, very little similar analysis exists for inter-group partnering patterns of gay Jews. Using both quantitative and qualitative data, this study addresses this void. The 2001 Canada Census data reveal that Canadian gay and lesbian Jews are "out-marrying" at a rate of approximately eighty-nine percent. This can be compared to an out-marriage rate of approximately thirty percent for Canadian heterosexual Jews. A qualitative sociological study on gay Jewish men both corroborates the census finding that gay Jews out-marry at a very high rate and offers a rich and nuanced account of the forces behind this statistic. We found that the majority of the gay Jewish men interviewed expressed a desire for a Jewish partner, but only a very small proportion of these men actually had Jewish partners. Several reasons are cited to explain this discrepancy. Findings about gay Jews are compared to both heterosexual Jews and to other minority gay men.