However, biologists have discredited the natural law theory since researchers discovered that "homosexual behavior was widespread among various nonhuman species and in a large number of human societies," (Herek 2009). In fact, anthropologists found that homosexuality is not uncommon among the world's diverse societies (Herek 2009).
In most cultures, homosexuality has been condemned, sometimes severely so. Some American colonies passed shockingly cruel laws that were overt extensions of religious points-of-view: "male and female homosexual acts were punishable by death," (Herek 2009). State sanctioned persecution of homosexuality continues even in societies that guarantee equal protection of the law and which prohibit state-sanctioned religious doctrine such as the United States. Homosexual persons are prohibited from entering into a marriage contract in the United States: which by definition constitutes discrimination. Several states in America have lifted their restrictions on gay marriage, but the federal government has yet to take a stance that expressly extends equal protection to the issue of homosexual marriage.
During the nineteenth century, science and religion "competed… for jurisdiction over sexuality," (Herek 2009). Even when science replaced religion in the public sphere, homosexuality was still a taboo subject and a taboo practice. During the early twentieth century, social scientists ranging from Sigmund Freud to Alfred Kinsey pointed out the natural sexual impulses among human beings that included not only homosexuality but also masturbation. Their research formed the basis of a shifting worldview toward sexuality.
Views on homosexuality...
The Japanese internment camps are but one manifestation of historic intolerance in the United States. The ghettoization of Jews and other perceived undesirable European groups during the early 20th century also proves that many American urban centers were founded on principles of intolerance. The geographic and cultural landscape of the United States continues to reflect intolerance: in the ways many if not most American cities remain visibly segregated into
Black Colleges Homosexuality In order to create more egalitarian, prosocial, and productive campus environments, it is necessary to understand attitudes toward homosexuality and homosexual students. Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) students experienced relatively high rates of substance abuse, depression, and stress related to discrimination, difficulties forming social relationships, and low self-esteem (Heck, Flentje & Cochran, 2011). As Kirby (2011) points out, "Having a negative self-concept plays a major role in
These responsibilities notwithstanding, the American public was already being conditioned to view the war in Iraq as a battle against extremists, that is, against the Islamist radicals who had threatened the "American" way" of life on September 11, 2001. Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson had already inflamed America's own Christian fundamentalists with talk that the terrible events of that day were to blame in part on "the gays and
Another common misconception is that gay people are more likely to be promiscuous than straight people. Being gay is not "all about sex and partying" it is fundamentally about love. Gay people are no more or less likely than straight people to be into 'partying' and every person should be evaluated on his or her own personal terms, not simply viewed in light of his or her sexuality. People may
Opponent to Gay Marriage offer Illusory Arguments The book The Invisible Gorilla: How Our Intuitions Deceive Us by Chabris and Simons truly makes a strong case for how six different types of illusions (or beliefs) truly disserve the human population. The six common illusions that the book discusses are the illusion of memory, the illusion of confidence, the illusion of knowledge, the illusion of cause and the illusion of potential.
Proposition 8 Homosexuality and what rights should be afforded to same-sex couples have been in the forefront of politics for the last few years. Before this, gay people had to fight to get recognized and for their relationships to even be legal. Right now, two very important issues have been about whether gay people should be allowed to get married and whether or not they should be allowed to adopt children
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