It may be everyday that you see two young girls walking on the streets holding hands on a fine Tuesday afternoon. It may be everyday, too, that you see two little boys playing at the oval and bonding closely whenever they rest from an all-day play. However, it is not everyday when you see adults act that way. Either the older members of the society do everything in their power to ostracize these people, or the individuals of the same age think they are not normal at all. The world calls them homosexuals. They are classified as either gays or lesbians.
The reason why it isn’t everyday that we see homosexuals showing affection anywhere is because it is everyday that other people talk behind their backs. Homosexuals deal with their sexuality everyday, in which their lives had turned into a constant battle in creating their own space in the world which they deserve. These homosexuals are fighting for their rights especially when it comes to equity, or plain equal consideration, for that matter. One of the rights these homosexuals are fighting for is gay/lesbian marriage. It never takes a genius to find out about such topic.
There are gay homosexuals everyday trying to act like straight men, and silent girls who only speak through the back pages of their notebooks and pad papers. There are millions of homosexuals hiding inside their closets and in turn, faking their very own self while dealing with the society they rightfully belong to. What it takes to get such topic is as simple as going out of the house to watch people. If not, libraries and Internet sites talk about this issue. Research is never scarce, and opinion surely never will. Value of Research towards the Value of Homosexuals
The importance of homosexuality as a part of the study about sexuality is not something to be questioned. Homosexuality is an issue that millions of people are dealing with. Because of this need to survive in a judgmental society, there is so much do to. The desire of homosexuals to be totally accepted in this world is enough to convince everything that there is a serious issue which everyone should do something about. Campaign for equal rights is everywhere – some are visible and loud on the streets while some are fought silently in the hearts. If this issue is not studied, the issue will never be understood.
Studying about homosexuality is a way to exert time and effort towards accepting the significant role of homosexuals in the society. Attention is a way which we can give the homosexuals a thought and a consideration somehow, that we are willing to understand them and do something about the situation they are in. The importance of this study is to encourage everyone to practice equity and gender sensitivity which will benefit us all and grant us all the piece of mind and a more comfortable existence. A Homosexual a Day If we look closer, homosexual practices are the same practices heterosexuals do.
They wake up everyday, go to school or work, have some fun like heterosexuals do and then go home to rest. Their routines are not any different to the routines of heterosexuals. They, too, eat bread and rice. Their diet is the same with the healthy diet of heterosexuals. What homosexuals are inclined to are the arts. One of the many examples would be Benvenuto Cellini, a world-renowned Italian artist whose sexual orientation as a gay did not stop him from sculpting his world-famous statues and creating his priceless metal crafts as a goldsmith.
There are many homosexuals today who are recognized for their talent and not for their sexual orientation, although it can not be denied that these people have silent and hidden wars in themselves. A popular practice of the members of the homosexual community is gay/lesbian marriage which is still not allowed in some parts of the world. Other countries had already recognized the significance of these people and their human rights as well, which is why gay/lesbian marriage is allowed. Gay/lesbian marriage, however, is still something others consider a taboo.
It may take them years before they understand. For the mean time, the social meanings and traditional views towards homosexuality keep others from understanding and accepting the harmless nature of homosexuals. The Social Stigma What do people think about homosexuals today? What are the common notions and reactions of most individuals when they hear the word “homosexuals? ” Some people think that homosexuality is a disease. In the history of psychology, homosexuality was first recognized as a form of perversion and therefore a psychological disorder which has to be treated.
In the 1970s, how this sexual orientation or preference was studied in psychology provided enough grounds to consider homosexuality as a crime. However, the first laws stopped punishing some behaviors of homosexuals. The situation was changed, but then, into something worse than a psychological torture. Because homosexuality was outlawed, bills were drafted and legislations were enacted to treat homosexuals (Herek, 1997). Some people also think that homosexuality is a form of lifestyle. This is connected to how people think about homosexuality being a disease.
If they think they can cure homosexuality, then they think they can change it the way lifestyle can be changed. They treat homosexuality as something they have to change, like stopping alcoholism or alleviating drug addiction (My Opera Community, 2006). However, no one can change homosexuality except the homosexual himself. If a lesbian thinks she is lesbian today and feels like she is bisexual tomorrow, then practicing the lifestyle is her choice. Her sexual preference can never be controlled, or more so, dictated by anyone. Many people understand homosexuality as a sin.
This can be manifested by the way people had managed to come up with laws and regulations to curtail homosexuality. Bishops and other members of the church highly encouraged homosexuality and warned the people that it is indeed an extremely immoral act. Because of this, the Church tried to change homosexuals into straight individuals thinking that homosexuality is a sinful condition. The Church thought that they could change homosexuals the way they can teach left-handed to be right-handed or ambidextrous. This reaction of the Church towards homosexuality, again, is not convincing.
Sexual preference is “preference,” and it is entirely a homosexual’s choice if he want the same or the opposite sex. Not even the Church can conquer the preferences of every individual (My Opera Community, 2006). Homosexuality in Retrospect All these can better be understood by taking a look at the history of homosexuality. In Europe, homosexuality was not yet a big deal. It was, in fact, ignored by the Christian Church. It was until the early 12th century in Europe, specifically in the secular and religious institutions, when enmity took place and aggression against homosexuality surfaced.
Any form of gay or lesbian behavior was highly condemned and was considered immoral. In the United States, gay and lesbian relationships were put under the category of sodomy because these were considered a violation of tradition. In the 19th century, gay and lesbians were never allowed to be married and hence, were considered criminals. The issue of homosexuality did not end in religion and the law; it reached the sciences, particularly psychology. This was where homosexuality was seen as a disease, a form of perversion, degenerative sickness or a psychological disorder (Herek, 1997).
Many psychologists and medical scientists studied homosexuality and more theories and researches were done to decipher its wonders. Sigmund Freud considered all people bisexual by nature which he said was something we inherit from our parents. Sandor Rado did not agree with Freud and said that heterosexuality is the normal and moral gender, while homosexuality is a heterosexual’s way of repairing sexual pleasures. In this case, Rado argued that homosexuality is a way in which heterosexuals can improve and experiment more on pleasures brought about by sex.
Alfred Kinsey, on the other hand, said that his studies show how homosexuals pleasure over their gender preference because of the point of orgasm they achieved when engaging in a sexual intercourse with the same sex (Herek, 1997). It was Hooker who was able to prove that homosexuality is indeed not a disease or a psychological condition. Hooker did an experiment in 1957 where she employed three projective tests namely the Make-A-Picture-Story Test, Thematic Apperception Test and the Rorschach. These three tests proved that the overall psychological adjustment of homosexuals and heterosexuals were the same.
This was supported by Gonsiorek where he concluded that “Homosexuality in and of itself is unrelated to psychological disturbance or maladjustment. Homosexuals as a group are not more psychologically disturbed on account of their homosexuality (Herek, 1997). ” A Growing Concern It goes to show, then, that the situation and dilemma homosexuals are facing today are continuous. That, indeed, is enough reason to do further studies about homosexuality, particularly their freedom to choose, to love and to live freely.
Because of the taboos, the many moral standards with which homosexuals should never be judge accordingly with, homosexual are deprived of many rights. Many religions, until today, consider homosexuality as a sin. This is the reason why many homosexuals are not allowed of marriage, which is a very basic human right, to begin with. Without legalizing or at least accepting that gay/lesbian marriage is not at all a sin, then millions of humans will keep hiding in the closets. The judgments of people keep millions of people from being happy.
Allowing the marriage of the same sexes is one sure step to let the world know that there is nothing wrong about homosexuals. They are humans first, before they are their gender preference. Consider a situation faced by a male homosexual named Brian in Jamaica. He was physically and psychologically assaulted by Banton, a homophobic reggae artist. Banton was a star who composed songs that suggested the death of homosexuals. As a homophobic, he attacked Brian. Brian’s complaints were in vain because the pieces of evidence were considered lacking.
Brian did not just lose in the court trial. He lost his landscaping. According to the Times Magazine, Brian had been “fearful of giving his last name”. Another case why researches about gay/lesbian marriages and concerns should be continued is the murder of prominent gay activists Steve Harvey and Brian Williamson where, according to Time Magazine news reporter Tim Padgett, “… a crowd even celebrated over Williamson’s mutilated body. Perhaps most disturbing, many anti-gay assaults have been acts of mob violence. ”(Padgett, 2006). A More Extensive Research
This paper presents the different situations homosexuals are facing, particularly the endless judgments of other people in which they are suffering greatly from. We have been encouraging to totally eliminate discrimination when it comes to religion and race, when in fact, gender discrimination is not any different from the other forms of discrimination other people are suffering from. Homosexuals are not allowed to exercise so many of their human rights. A basic concept such as love or marriage is even a taboo. All these root from a specific prejudiced study and perception in history.
Studies like this one, then, should be developed and encouraged, so that each individual contributes in a homosexual’s supposedly peaceful life. This will help people realize how much homosexuals need consideration. A study about gay/lesbian relationships and other concerns also helps people be more open minded. Institutions like the medicine, religions and even politics should welcome homosexuals because they are also part of the society. Future researches will definitely give homosexuals their rightful place in the face of the planet.
References:
Herek, Gregory M. (1997). Facts About Homosexuality and Mental Health. Retrieved December 11, 2007 from http://psychology. ucdavis. edu/rainbow/html/facts_mental_health. html My Opera Community. (26 March 2006). Is Homosexuality a Disease? Retrieved December 11, 2007 from http://my. opera. com/Samson%20Isberg/blog/show. dml/193670 Padget, Tim. (12 April 2006). The Most Homophobic Place on Earth. Time Magazine. Retrieved December 11, 2007 from http://www. time. com/time/world/article/0,8599,1182991,00. html