Since I arrived in California a week ago, I’ve had two conversations with journalists writing about LGBTQ people getting into guns, especially since Trump was elected again.
I know this is happening anecdotally, personally and from those on the organizational front lines.
But I was unable to point these reporters to anyone who has solid quantitative data on this. And not just on a recent Trump election surge.
What about data from The Great Gun Buying Spree of 2020? We know that a dominant story there was new and non-traditional gun owners. But we get only anecdotal and qualitative stories about that.
What about data from after the Pulse nightclub shooting? Again, only anecdotal (e.g., a Rolling Stone story) and qualitative stories about that.
Jonathan Rauch wrote his Salon essay on “Pink Pistols” in 2000. 25 years later, very few scholars have spent much time trying to understand LGBTQ gun owners. So many studies of gun owners are hetero-cis normative.
Did no one surveying new, non-traditional gun owners since the Great Gun Buying Spree of 2020 ask about gender identity or sexual orientation? If they did, I missed it. Please send references!
Gun Culture 2.0 
I don’t know of any surveys; but Karl from InRangeTV, and DeviantOllam both seem more tuned into the subject.
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If someone asks you if you own a gun, the only acceptable answer is, “No, of course not!” A doctor. A “survey taker.” Whoever.
That is true whether or not you are gay.
If you look at Pink Pistols, which is one of the older LGBT orgs in shooting and self-defense, they don’t require people to sign a list. In part that was because of when the organization was started, which was when you didn’t want your name on a list – it could cost you a lot to be exposed as gay, not that long ago, in certain parts of the country.
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I am a firearms instructor near Rehoboth Beach, Delaware (a frequent vacation spot for everyone), and while I do not ask students their orientation or political affiliation or leanings in life, I am acutely aware that a percentage of my students probably do not share my political views (Reagan-era Republican, possibly more libertarian). That being said, I only care that my students are safe while handling firearms on my Range with or without my close supervision. I taught one student who advised that while they were accepted into the community of like-minded individuals for their lifestyle, they were ostracized by the community for their desire to carry a firearm for protection. I feel that it is clearly hypocritical but then aren’t all groups of people a little hypocritical when you strip away all the superficialities. Smarter people than me can ponder that conundrum. We will probably never know the exact numbers but as long as instructors treat their students as individuals and leave the political or personal biases outside of the classroom and Range, more people who would never think of possessing/firing a firearm will be inclined to seek thoughtful instruction to stay safe.
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