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Gay and lesbian discrimination
Causes of abuse and victimisation in LGBT communities
Gay and lesbian discrimination
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“Same-sex sexual and romantic attractions, feelings, and behaviours are normal and positive variations of human sexuality” (Glassgold et al., 2009). It is 2018 and a majority of people still do not share this opinion. Sexual orientation continues to be the source of much controversy and a large amount of abuse and discrimination directed toward members of the LGBTQ community. These individuals experience various forms of abuse and discrimination that their heterosexual counterparts do not experience. Their sexuality is the source of inequality. For example, gay teenagers are very often the targets of bullying, physical assault, and other abuse that sometimes it drives them to commit suicide or at least to experience severe emotional distress
Homophobia does not allow homosexuals to use public and private places as heterosexuals use to socialize and have fun . The homosexual community suffer from some of the following descrimination like are showing affection in public or dance in a lounge, bar or night club, or even be in a restaurant; attend church, or be considered for family, work or political activities. Finally, homosexuals as human being they are inevitably discriminated in places such as work, family and educational environments. Society is responsible for creating a number of negative prejudices and stereotypes toward homosexual orientation; making homosexuals feel insecure about themselves in areas such as intellectual and emotional level. The rejection among homosexual relations is caused due to the need to procreation feel these people to satisfy their desires to perform as father or man role model. The fear felt by homosexuals that are not being accepted by the family, forces them to repress their feelings and sexual desires. The acceptance and respect of a parent for their kid being homosexual is vital, so the children can develop without no fears or
On May the eighth of this year, the Conference of United States Religious Leaders and Ministers was held in Chicago, Illinois. The conference is an annual event coordinated by church leaders who each send a representative to take part in the discussions. Father Gregory McAllister of the Diocese of Arlington traveled to Chicago to attend the conference and share his knowledge. He spoke on behalf of the Catholic Church, while ministers and clergy from various religions from across the country also shared their views on the topics discussed.
Throughout the devastating years of World War II, hundreds of thousands of people lost their lives on the western front. Although there were numerous casualties, nothing can compare to the incidents that ended World War II, the dropping of the most destructive weapon known to mankind, the atomic bomb in Japan. In the years following the incident, much controversy had begun to arise when historians decided to construct an exhibit to commemorate the United States’ victory over the Japanese empire by displaying the air plane that dropped the atomic bomb on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, the Enola Gay. As Linenthal stated, “For fifty years, these two stories – of a weapon that brought peace and victory, and of a weapon that brought destruction and fear to the world – rested uneasily in American consciousness” (Linenthal 2). Linenthal, throughout his writing, displays
In addition victimization can be more serious than verbal abuse or threats and some youth are the victims of a risen number of assaults and other hate crimes committed against gays and lesbians (Comstock, 1991; Herek, 1989 pg. 246). For college students who identify themselves as gay or lesbian, normative expectations of identity exploration render much more
Suicide and suicide attempt rates in LGBT youth and young adults are a staggering three times the normal amount, with heterosexual teens being nearly five times less likely to attempt suicide than LGBT teens. This is due to an extreme rate of unfair treatment and rude words towards LGBT folk. LGBT, standing for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender, is a community of people that do not identify as heterosexual or as their sex assigned at birth. Bullying and harassment is common in this community, simply because others do not understand them. Despite the continuation of discrimination and bullying of teens and adults who identify under the LGBT spectrum, Daniel Savage is an important activist working towards getting rid of harsh opinions about
A social problem, according to Thomas Sullivan (2012), is “when an influential group defines it as threating its values, when the condition affects a large number of people, and when it can be remedied by collective action”. Homophobia is indeed a social problem because negative stereotypes are prohibiting gay males and lesbians from living an equal, free life like their heterosexual counterparts. Whether the homophobic acts are minor or major, all homosexuals are discriminated, ostracized, beaten, or murdered every day. Further discussion of how homophobic stereotypes affect homosexuals, who is considered to be homophobic, and potential solutions to stop homophobia will be described below through peer reviewed literature.
It is very reasonable to conclude that research on depression of those who identify as gay, lesbian or transsexual is not accurate; there is an underreporting of people who identify as these sexual orientations because of the fear of being different. It is understood that those apart of the LGBTQ community actively hide their identity in hopes to avoid being rejected or abused (Bird, 2013). Once the reporting issue of having a smaller percentage of the actual representation of the LGBTQ population is put aside, there is evidence that highly suggests that lesbians and gay men are at higher risk for psychiatric disorders than heterosexuals (Cochran, 2001). Even after underreporting, there is still enough information to conclude that sexual discrimination can have harmful effects on the quality of life. Common factors that have been observed in lesbians and gays that can potentially increase depression during Cochran's study are anxiety and mood disorders and decreased self esteem. Cochran and her partner also noted that dissatisfaction with how one is treated beca...
“What’s the big whoop?” asks a cute, blonde, elementary school aged boy when his teacher discusses homosexuality. He didn’t understand why people cared who other people loved. Little kids are perfect examples of how society’s negativity towards homosexuality creates homophobia. Children don’t understand why it matters who you love because they don’t see it as a problem and their opinions aren’t clouded by stereotypes. If LGBT issues were taught to these innocent, uninvolved children in elementary school, it would be more likely they would be accepting as they grew up. It is important to present LGBT in a positive light before parents, classmates, and media influence their perceptions.
Since the 1800's, psychiatrists and psychologists have concluded that homosexuality is a mental disorder. They have believed it is brought about by misguided upbringing and their social environments. For instance, it was believed that if the child was lacking a male - figure in the home, he would most likely be gay. Or that child abuse can lead to lesbianism when the special needs of a little girl are denied, ignored, or exploited and the future womanhood of the child is in risk. However, inconsistencies in the research subjects' abuse records ruled these theories out. And if this were the case, then why is homosexuality present in different cultures? Some believed homosexuality was caused by a difference in brain structure. In 1991, Simon LeVay published research stating that sexual orientation may be the result of differing brain structures. The hypothalamus, a region in the brain that governs sexual behavior, was the structure that LeVay was pointing as the structure at fault. In his studies of the hypothalamus, he found that in homosexual men, the hypothalamus was smaller than that of heterosexual men. Instead, it was the size of the female hypothalamus, consequently explaining their sexual tendencies.
D’Augelli, A.R. (1998). Developmental implications of victimization of lesbian, gay, and bisexual youths. In G.M. Herek (Ed.), Stigma and sexual orientation: Understanding prejudice against lesbians, gay men and bisexuals (pp.187-210). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
I do not agree with the argument that viewing sexual orientation as innate would make more people open minded. There are some innate characteristics like sex, which is viewed as an innate characteristic caused by our biology. Since sex is viewed as an innate characteristic and viewed through the binary lens of society which creates less open-mindedness. Something perceived as innate as sex is not a topic that is discussed with an open mind. Someone is either male or female. I do not believe that viewing sexual orientation as something innate would create open minds for the topic but rather would create a thought process where a person is either one or the other, something binary. Seeing something is innate or biological creates a norm and
From the moment people born, there are certain basic functions that will be with them throughout their lives. The abilities to eat, breathe, sleep, or to have the capacity to learn are a natural occurrence for most people. There are, however, traits that are specific to each individual. They are traits that set them apart from everyone else. The traits such as eye color, ones dominate hand, or susceptibility to a specific disease are a few traits that aren’t easily changed. However, there are some that are controversially questioned as to whether or not one is born with the trait or if it is a learned behavior. One of the biggest of these controversies is the question of whether sexual orientation is a choice or something that is beyond the individual’s influence. Although the evidence is commonly disregarded because of personal beliefs or opinions, sexual orientation is not a choice.
We believe that Violence and hate against homosexuality need to diminish severely. Gay bashing, gay bullying, and hate crime is very popular when it comes to hating on homosexual people. LGBT people of all ages die every year, whether caused by suicide, injury or homicide. From 1999-2010, the Web-based Injury Statistics Query and Reporting System, part of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention program says that suicide is the 3rd leading cause (4,600 deaths) of death among young people ages 15 to 24. In 2011 there were 1,572 victims that received hate crimes based on sexual orientation. In an article on PBS, written by a woman named Karen Franklin, a description of an interview with a man called Brian states that him and his ...
Homosexuality in Today's Society. In today's society, there exists a mixture of issues which tend to raise arguments with people all over. There are a handful of topics that always seem to escalate these differences between people to the point where one who earnestly participates in discussion, debate and argument can direct their anger towards their feelings on the person themselves. Some examples of such delicate subjects are the death penalty, abortion, and euthanasia.
When one hears the words “LGBT” and “Homosexuality” it often conjures up a mental picture of people fighting for their rights, which were unjustly taken away or even the social emergence of gay culture in the world in the1980s and the discovery of AIDS. However, many people do not know that the history of LGBT people stretches as far back in humanity’s history, and continues in this day and age. Nevertheless, the LGBT community today faces much discrimination and adversity. Many think the problem lies within society itself, and often enough that may be the case. Society holds preconceptions and prejudice of the LGBT community, though not always due to actual hatred of the LGBT community, but rather through lack of knowledge and poor media portrayal.