In Africa, the act of homophobia is supported by a vast number of Presidents. There has been an increase in the protests against people who are involved in these same-sex relations in Africa because it is viewed as a taboo that could ruin family values. Political leaders have strongly stood against homosexuality because they view it as un-African and something that could harm the traditions of Africa (Msibi, 2011:56). But by saying that homosexuality is un-African, is to support an act that is aimed at hiding the truth about homosexuality behind the deception and the use of male authoritative figures. The term homosexual is a term that does not originate from Africa. It is a Western term. This term controlled relations on a social scale in the west and also gave a label to those people who were involved in same-sex relations. Being known as a gay or homosexual person allowed people to feel a sense of collective identity. It made people involved in same-sex relationships feel like they had their own communities and gave them a sense of belonging.
In many African countries, same-sex relationships are not be made public. Being involved in such a relationship may lead one to being discriminated against or even executed. In most African countries, it has been made illegal and it is a punishable offence to be involved in same-sex relations. In Malawi, two men were sentenced to fourteen years in prison for publicly celebrating their engagement, due to widespread uprising from the Western world, they were granted amnesty on humanitarian grounds (Msibi, 2009: 58). The worst case so far has been in Uganda, where an anti- homosexuality bill has been proposed and recently put into action. This bill states that homosexuality is an offense tha...
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...ny wives to secure their autonomy. There seemed to be a clear separation between sex and gender: the women could be males and vice versa (Msibi, 2009:65). The women that were strong economically could take on many wives to assert their power.
This then leads to the conclusion that same-sex relations are not new to the African continent. This then ultimately shatters the thinking that Africans were heterosexual before the Europeans came to the country. The only thing that is new and un-African is the identification and labelling of the act. Forming an identity around being a homosexual is the un-African thing that is being referred to by the many politicians and religious leaders. The desire to be involved with someone of the same-sex sexually is not a problem brought about by Europeans because evidently, it has been around Africa for centuries before colonization.
Even though married women could not own property or anything of the sort, single women were able to own land, make a contract, initiate lawsuits, and pay taxes. Even with the privelages bestowed upon the...
submissive, powerless objects of their husbands. Equality and balance within their marriages were of no
Society is created with both homosexual and heterosexual individuals. Previously when certain laws discriminated against others, such as law for women's rights to vote, these laws were changed. Changing the traditions of the country does not mean that it will lead to the legalization of other extreme issues. Each ...
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...
The term “homosexuality” is a taboo for many while it does not exist for others. Impending wars, terror attacks, natural calamities, the world is under a great threat and so is humanity. People tend to forget or rather neglect the plea of the so called ‘minority’ community. Around the globe we can see the increasing awareness among the people but it is also a fact that gender based hate-attacks are also on the rise. To understand homosexuality is also to understand the workings of nature and its historical evidence.
Is homosexuality considered a choice to have or not? Homosexuality is something someone is born with. Someone can not just choose whether they are straight, bisexual, pansexual, or homosexual. People sometimes want to be one, but they end up being the other, which is not their choice. People go through life thinking being a homosexual is considered a choice and for attention, but that isn’t at all what people do that for. In “Is Homosexuality a Choice?” the article states: “Supporting gay marriage becomes equivalent to supporting the construction of wheelchair ramps. The ‘gays can’t help being that way’ approach is reminiscent of the old view of homosexuality as a psychiatric illness” (Mallory, Marcia, Scientific American). This is saying
"Trouble brews over gay issue: province of Central Africa 'could' split." Anglican Journal Oct. 2007: 8. Academic OneFile. Web. 7 Apr. 2014.
As the years dragged on in the new nation the roles of men and women became more distinct and further apart for one another. Women were not allowed to go anywhere in public without an escort, they could not hold a position in office let allow vote, and they could only learn the basics of education (reading, writing, and arithmetic). In law the children belonged to the husband and so did the wife’s property and money. The only job women could think about having was being a ‘governess’ which would give other women education.
Homosexuality is not a new trend, sexual orientation, or identity, in fact homosexuality is believed to date back over 5,000 years ago (Adams, 2011). Same sex couples have existed for thousands of years and research will show how the social and political stigmas that are known today, have stemmed from religious point of views and political opinions.
(a) Africans and Europeans have relations that date all the way back to the origins of humans and human migrations. Scholars have hypothesized that Homo erectus found in Europe about 800,000 years ago originated and migrated from Africa Europeans and Africans also had religious relations; which is evident from the spread of Christianity, introduced by the Byzantines, throughout Africa specifically in North Africa, the Nile Valley, and the Horn of Africa. Aside from religious relations, Africans and Europeans also had economic and political relations as a result of European colonization and conquest of the African regions. Economic relations were a result of Europeans coming into Africa and taking natural resources to benefit from in the production of goods and trade. Another specific example of economic relations between Europeans and Africans is the practice of mercantilism, in which European nations were the mother countries and countries of Africa were the colonies. As the mother country, Europeans, would take natural resources from the colony, African regions, to produce goods, which would then be sold back to the colony. This also attributed to the political relations between Africans and Europeans because the economic desires of the Europeans often led to them controlling the Africans to maximize profit and their own personal benefits; which is directly related to slavery, one of the biggest relations between Africans and Europeans. Slavery and the slave trade in turn created social relations because slaves were considered to be a class of their own. Another social relation that resulted from slavery was the creation a “new race” known as the...
Of all topics most popular in today's media, issues concerning homosexuals and homosexuality in general top the list. Homosexuality is generally defined as a sexual relationship between partners of the same sex. Debate concerning its causes and consequences has been going on for many centuries and almost in every period in human history. However, never before in human history has it been granted such wide scale acceptance in western society as it has now. The question that I seek to answer in this paper is whether such wide scale acceptance should in fact be granted to homosexual behavior? Is such behavior rational, scientifically functional or is it actually detrimental to the high level of civilization that we've achieved?
Gender and sexuality can be comprehended through social science. Social science is “the study of human society and of individual relationships in and to society” (free dictionary, 2009). The study of social science deals with different aspects of society such as politics, economics, and the social aspects of society. Gender identity is closely interlinked with social science as it is based on an identity of an individual in the society. Sexuality is “the condition of being characterized and distinguished by sex” (free dictionary, 2009). There are different gender identities such as male, female, gay, lesbian, transgender, and bisexual that exists all around the world. There is inequality in gender identities and dominance of a male regardless of which sexuality they fall under. The males are superior over the females and gays superior over the lesbians, however it different depending on the place and circumstances. This paper will look at the gender roles and stereotypes, social policy, and homosexuality from a modern and a traditional society perspective. The three different areas will be compared by the two different societies to understand how much changes has occurred and whether or not anything has really changed. In general a traditional society is more conservative where as a modern society is fundamentally liberal. This is to say that a traditional society lists certain roles depending on the gender and there are stereotypes that are connected with the genders. One must obey the one that is dominant and make decisions. On the other hand, a modern society is lenient, It accepts the individual’s identity and sexuality. There is no inequality and everyone in the society is to be seen as individuals not a part of a family unit...
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.
An overwhelming majority of African nations has reclaimed their independence from their European mother countries. This did not stop the Europeans from leaving a permanent mark on the continent however. European colonialism has shaped modern-day Africa, a considerable amount for the worse, but also some for the better. Including these positive and negative effects, colonialism has also touched much of Africa’s history and culture especially in recent years.
Our world is constantly changing and people are constantly facing many new experiences. Throughout society, there are many different people and different opinions to match. One matter that has a lot of different opinions is the matter of homosexuality. Depending on what a person believes or how accepting they are, will reflect on their opinion on this topic. With the world constantly, we have very old styles of thinking versus more modern opinions. This essay will show the ways that homosexuals are sometimes looked down upon in society (with older views) and the way that the world is changing.