Imagine you were left-handed. How would you feel if you were bullied for this mere reason? What if you had blue eyes and I beat you up in the school yard because of your eye colour? Sounds ridiculous, doesn’t it? What I am going to talk about today is just as absurd. It is like poison that permeates the very fabric of society. I am talking about homophobia, a problem that remains largely unaddressed. With this speech I would like us to reflect on the presence of this issue in society and the threats it poses to humanity. And finally, I will propose possible ways to eliminate this stigma. To be honest, when I had my first encounter with homophobia, I didn’t really understand this hatred. I watched a movie called The Laramie Project. It tells the true story of Matthew Shepard. You may have heard of him. Matthew Shepard was an innocent gay student who was tortured and left to die tied to a fence because of his sexual orientation. I couldn’t comprehend it because until then I had never been exposed to gay culture and therefore I didn’t consider homosexuality a weakness. The thing is, I saw homosexuality as a fact, I didn’t question it, I didn’t attribute certain features or qualities to it. And I still don’t. For me it is merely a part of people’s personal lives. You can imagine how shocked I was when I found out that there were people who thought that the sexual preferences of others affected them. But I wanted to understand, because there must have been some explanation behind this behaviour. So I started reading. I will now share my journey of discovery with you. Let me start from the beginning. Homophobia means “fear of sameness”. It describes the irrational fear or hate of homosexuals. It can come in any shape or form. It can b... ... middle of paper ... ...qual in dignity and rights. Why have we turned our backs on it? This should remind us that gay people are people. The next step should be public endorsement from credible religious leaders. It might seem impossible or out of our league, but I assure you it is not. Last month Dalai Lama publically stated his acceptance of homosexuality. Pope Francis stated his support for LGBT marriages. But even the biggest efforts will be ineffective, if we treat homophobia in isolation. Homophobes are likely to be people who show a general dislike for stigmatised groups. In order to eradicate this problem from our society, we need to work on overcoming all aspects of discrimination so that we create a safe space for tolerance to flourish. The first steps toward achieving equality have already been made. It is our turn to educate ourselves and lead by example. Now it is up to you!
Language is a powerful tool. The artful manipulation of language has sparked countless revolutions and has continuously fueled social progression over the course of human history. In Carmen Vàzquez’s “Appearances,” Vàzquez argues that homophobia is a serious concern in society. She rallies for all people, regardless of sexual orientation, to challenge society’s unyielding gender roles and homophobia. Through the art of persuasion, Carmen Vàzquez blended careful diction, emotional stories, and persuasive structure to aggressively address the problem of homophobia both coherently and effectively.
For years homosexuality in the United States of America has been looked down upon by citizens, religions, and even politicians. The homosexual culture, or the LGBT (Lesbian Gay Bisexual Transgender), has been demoralized and stuck out and lashed against by the Heterosexual community time and time again. To better understand the LGBT community we must first grasp the concept of Sexual Orientation.
In the past decades, the struggle for gay rights in the Unites States has taken many forms. Previously, homosexuality was viewed as immoral. Many people also viewed it as pathologic because the American Psychiatric Association classified it as a psychiatric disorder. As a result, many people remained in ‘the closet’ because they were afraid of losing their jobs or being discriminated against in the society. According to David Allyn, though most gays could pass in the heterosexual world, they tended to live in fear and lies because they could not look towards their families for support. At the same time, openly gay establishments were often shut down to keep openly gay people under close scrutiny (Allyn 146). But since the 1960s, people have dedicated themselves in fighting for
Why would people develop a phobia of homosexual? There are certain ways in which the society expects people to behave and relate. Gender policy has been a major issue of concern because most people engage in things that are opposite to what are expected of them. Cultural globalization has changed many things and the way people think. This paper will summarize the story “Bros before Hos” by Michael Kimmel analytically and determine the reasons why people would develop a phobia of homosexual.
Currently, only 13 countries offer rights for members of the LGBT community. Within those countries, few offer equal rights such as health care, marriage rights, and adoption to LGBT members. Many people around the globe would agree that these rights, along with all other rights granted to heterosexuals, should not be granted to these members of the LGBT community. One prevalent notion is that being gay, or being included in the LGBT community, is unnatural. This notion is simply incorrect; everyone, no matter their gender, gender identity, or sexual orientation does, in fact, deserve the same liberties as their heterosexual counterparts. Being a member of the LGBT community has no negative effect on the lives of others unless those people view heterosexuality in a negative light, allowing it to bedevil them, and ultimately change the way they live their life. Being gay is completely natural. Though some would argue that homosexuality is unnatural, others would disagree, being that research has been conducted. The conclusion was that the way people think and feel towards others is s...
This study explores the lives of sexual minority individuals who have endured childhood physical abuse, and the long term psychological effects in which it creates. This study in particular sampled members who were solely apart of the LGBT community - 112 adult lesbians and 115 gay men to be exact. Childhood physical abuse is well-known to be detrimental as it is closely related to psychological symptoms such as anxiety, depression, and PTSD. Even worse, it is known to arise high risk behaviors such as suicide thoughts, and substance abuse. Furthermore, it is crucial to understand internalized homophobia and experiential avoidance as it too plays a huge role in the current psychological well being of theses individuals. Internalized homophobia, negative societal attitudes towards homosexuality, is known to bridge the gap for gay men and their current symptoms. In contrast, for the sample community of lesbians, experiential avoidance was the mediator for their current
Fag. Poof. Fairy. Homo. Dyke. Those are all words that are used on a daily basis to put down those who do not fit into the Bible’s supposed cookie-cutter, straight sexual orientation label. Homophobia has been around since the eleven hundreds, but before then homosexuality was viewed as healthy, normal, and at times it was even worshipped. However, society’s view of homosexuality has somehow been warped into a violently negative opinion. How did this happen? The main perpetrators of homophobia are the Bible and those who preach its word, or at least their version of its word. Which brings up the translation issues scattered throughout the Bible. The New Testament was written in Greek and there are not always direct translations of each word in English. The messages in the Bible that are said to condemn homosexuality can be interpreted in a more accepting way than they are usually preached.
What really grinds my gears is seeing homophobia in the modern world. Yes, I acknowledge that it is seen as a sin—especially in the early times when people believe in witchcraft. Seriously, it’s 2016 and we’re having a little fit over who uses what bathroom? We’re having worse things going on! We have ISIS, we have a potential war coming up, we have school shootings and gang violence, and worse of all we have the possibility of Trump being our president and people are losing their marbles over who uses what bathroom? It’s just a bathroom! If it makes you so uncomfortable to go into a bathroom that is gender neutral, then don’t use it! Simple! Being a gay boy in school made me uncomfortable going to the boy’s bathroom/locker room. I grew up in a small town—Oroville, WA—where homosexuality wasn’t really seen, and some people felt uncomfortable by it. I hated going to the boy’s bathroom/locker room because I constantly felt I didn’t belong with them, but I didn’t belong with the girls either…I didn’t know where I belonged. I felt if I went into the boy’s bathroom/locker room, then they would judge me or feel uncomfortable with me in there—I used to think that boy’s hated me in there because they felt that I was looking at them or checking them out
In our world there has and will always have social issues that our society that is damaging our people. One of the proponent issue is in our world is Homophobia. As Homophobia is defined has people that dislike of or is prejudice against homosexual people. Recently our society has started to be more accepting with the LGBTQ community. Homophobia has really affected all people in very negative ways regardless of their sexual orientation. As homophobia is based on someone disliking or being prejudice to another person targeted to people that are homosexual. There are many people that want to fight against homophobia and help protect and support the LGBTQ community. The different sexual orientations of all individuals they have the right to be who they identity them selves as. As homophobia not only affects the LGBTQ community but affects every sexual orientation, seeing that much hate and prejudice toward people it is just sad and disturbing that people still hate on something they have no control over.
Homosexuality is a sensitive topic and often avoided in conversation. For centuries the human race has oppressed and persecuted others strictly because they are gay, lesbian, bisexual etc. Although it is disturbing to most of us, these actions still occur in our society today, as many believe that homosexuality is abnormal and disgraceful. One supporter of this belief is Michael Levin, who strongly believes that homosexuality is highly abnormal and thus, undesirable. Although his beliefs and theories supporting this claim are subjective, there is evidence that can support his stance on this topic; we will analyze this claim in further detail and how it relates to his other views mentioned in this essay.
Homosexuals are currently still being oppressed, but it’s not as bad as it used to be. Doctors, and psychotherapists would have special practices that was used to force the homosexual tendencies out of a person. However, not only doctors would try to cure homosexuality, even some churches would take it upon themselves to force “the devil” out of homosexuals. On top of that, the parents of homosexuals would make them go to these therapies, because they were not able to accept them as they are. Homophobic people may have the slightest thought that homosexuality can be cured, and the process has little risks to it. As a matter of fact attempting to cure homosexuality can be very destructive to one’s brain.
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. An issue that has in recent years, begun to increase arguments, is the acceptability of homosexuality in society. Until recently, homosexuality was considered strictly taboo. If an individual was homosexual, it was considered a secret to be kept from all family, friends, and society. However, it seem that society has begun to accept this lifestyle by allowing same sex couples. The idea of coming out of the 'closet' has moved to the head of homosexual individuals when it used to be the exception. Homosexuality is nothing to be ashamed of and we should all come to realize this.
Most people have grown up in a society where being a homosexual is not okay. Although LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender) people are being more accepted, they are still thought as ‘wrong’ to a lot of people and places. A big argument is that being gay is “unnatural” however, it is found that homosexuality is practiced in over 1,500 animal species such as giraffes, lions, and several species of apes and monkeys. We believe the hate against homosexuality should decrease, and the homosexual rights should increase.
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.
...t and understanding they would want in return. People would be the back bone and emotional support for one another. In a precious world such as that, homophobia would not exist because of the kindness and respect of its members towards one another would mean that differences within the community would be valued and celebrated. Homophobic societies deny these differences and are strongly prohibited. The effects on homophobic bullying causes vicious attacks mentally and physically toward those of the gay community as well as straight people who "appears to be gay" or supporters of gay rights. Homophobia forces the ideology of stereotypes and that man are perceived to act "macho" and woman to be "feminine". Homophobia limits our individuality and self-expression to appreciate the diversity and unique traits within our society that are not viewed as the “norm”.