Ignorance about a subject can cause people to be against the subject. Not knowing about a subject can make people to feel hesitant, uncomfortable and obviously unsure. Throughout history there are many examples of people who are ignorant about a subject and react violently or inappropriately towards others. Homosexuality is definitely one of the most common subjects people are ignorant about. It causes children to be shunned, disowned, and embarrassed mainly due to parents and peers who do not choose to educate themselves but remain ignorant. There are some Americans who choose to stay ignorant and lack tolerance to diversity and eventually affect individuals like David Piden, young closeted homosexuals too afraid to truly show themselves. Educating our youth on homosexuality can encourage our nation to intercept the pattern of ignorance on the subject and help young Americans to build a tolerance to diversity.
It had been nearly six months since David was severely beaten and left to die. David Piden glared down at his shaking hand as the attorney continued to question him. David appeared startled as he glanced up at the two young faces of his attackers. In the compact courtroom it was hard for David to avoid seeing their bright orange jumpsuits with coal black numbers written on the chest pocket. The attorney interrupted Davids thoughts “What would you define your relationship with my client before the events of April 13th?”. David hesitantly replied “We were good friends, we had grown up together since kindergarten. We went to all of the same schools, lived in the same neighborhood and played on the same football team.” The attorney nodded as he moved closer to the jury and asked “In your words could you explain to the court the...
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In today’s society, family structure has changed dramatically from the traditional nuclear family to the unconventional, such as single parenting or same sex families. Over the years, many individuals questioned whether or not a parent’s sexual orientation affected their child’s sexual preference. There is significant research that has shown that children with lesbian parents do not differ from children with heterosexual parents. Many individuals stated that it is the value of the parent’s relationship with the child and not the parent’s sexual orientation that affects the child’s development. Contrary to the popular belief, children raised by lesbian parents are not more likely to become gay than children who are raised by heterosexual parents. A parent’s sexual orientation has said to have little importance to children other than the family togetherness. In other words, the relationship of the parent and child is far greater important than the sexual orientation of one’s parents. To be a good parent to a child has nothing to do with one’s sexual preference, but how well one takes care of that child emotionally, physically, financially, and mentally. Before the 20th, century children were often seen as miniature versions of adults so there was little consideration to children development in cognitive and physical development. The interest of child development did not peak until the early 20th century. Conscientious parenting happens not only within traditional nuclear families, but also within homosexual families. Both traditional nuclear and homosexual families can have positive and negative effects on children’s cognitive, psychological or behavioral development due to their rearing.
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The essay by Peter J. Gomes, entitled �Homophobic? Read Your Bible,� can be analyzed in many ways. The essay discusses the issue of homosexuality as it relates to religion. The Baptist minister provides an unexpected approach to the subject. Mr. Gomes�s thesis statement in this essay is, �The army of the discontented, eager for clear villains and simple solutions and ready for a crusade in which political self-interest and social anxiety can be cloaked in morality, has found hatred of homosexuality to be the last respectable prejudice of the century� (�Homophobic� 414). This essay uses effective evidence to prove the thesis statement while also doing a good job of refuting opposing views.
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One of the many issues that homophobic people have against homosexuals is that being brought up in an “untraditional” home is not good for the children. There have...
Freud's most important articles on homosexuality were written between 1905, when he published Three Essays on the Theory of Sexuality, and 1922, when he published "Certain Neurotic Mechanisms in Jealousy, Paranoia, and Homosexuality."[1] Freud believed that all humans were bisexual, by which he primarily meant that everyone incorporates aspects of both sexes, and that everyone is sexually attracted to both sexes. In his view, this was true anatomically and therefore also mentally and psychologically. Heterosexuality and homosexuality both developed from this original bisexual disposition.[2] As one of the causes of homosexuality Freud mentions the distressing heterosexual experience: "Those cases are of particular interest in which the libido changes over to an inverted sexual object after a distressing experience with a normal one."[3]
Whether it is consciously or unconsciously our society has the tendency to have negative attitudes and prejudices against members of the LGBT community.
“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.
There are many people who are firm believers that if you are gay, you were born that way and it has nothing to do with your surrounding environment. There have been lots of scientific research and studies done to help prove this side. For example, many scientists have done in depth studies on th...
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.
Parents, Families, and Freinds of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG). Home page. http://www.pflag.org/ (22 Apr. 1998).
Society today has become more accepting of homosexuality. There are single gender couples in the media, and gay rights, such as marriage, have become a political standpoint. In this class we have discussed how society today is changing, and how important it is to be accepting of others who are different. In a heterosexual society, it is a big deal that we are becoming more accepting of people who like the same sex. The problem is, some people aren't just heterosexual or homosexual. Similar to the gender binary, there is a sexual orientation binary being created by the media. The black and white view is damaging to people who like both genders. Society tries to put labels on people, causing people to question their own identity. In the time of adolescence this can be very damaging to someone, male or female. Education about bisexuality could be the step society needs to take to create a more accepting society. Right now, a bisexual is seen as someone who cannot make a choice, but society should not pressure people to choose. People should not have to label themselves heterosexual or homosexual. The media has become more accepting of same sex couples, however, it exploits bisexuality.
Martino, Wayne, and Wendy Cumming-Potvin. "They Didn't Have 'Out There' Gay Parents--They Just Looked Like "Normal" Regular Parents": Investigating Teachers' Approaches To Addressing Same-Sex Parenting And Non-Normative Sexuality In The Elementary School Classroom." Curriculum Inquiry 41.4 (2011): 480-501. ERIC. Web. 20 Mar. 2014.