NE News Now

Freedom is at stake in a case that goes to court today in New Jersey.

The Southern Poverty Law Center, a left wing group that has labeled the American Family Association a hate group, has filed suit against JONAH, a Jewish organization that helps people with same gender attractions who want to change. Charles LiMandri of the Freedom of Conscience Defense Fund is representing JONAH.

LiMandri

“The SPLC is taking the position that telling homosexuals that you can help them overcome same sex attractions is a fraud, that there’s nothing wrong with having same sex attractions and there’s nothing wrong with being involved in homosexual behavior,” he says.

So, the Southern Poverty Law Center is trying to deprive them of their right to self- determination and religious freedom in considering that the Torah forbids homosexuality.

“Because JONAH is a religiously-based organization, the idea it follows is that homosexuality is disordered,” he says. “Not because it’s a mental disease or defect, but because it’s a sinful behavior and it’s against God’s plan.”

LiMandri will ask the court to dismiss the case on constitutional grounds. A lot is at stake and not just freedom. If the SPLC wins, the organization plans to use that as precedent and legally challenge the more than 70 faith-based groups in the country that provide counseling for unwanted same gender attractions.

Homosexuality is romantic attraction, sexual attraction, or sexual activity between members of the same sex or gender. As an orientation, homosexuality refers to “an enduring pattern of or disposition to experience sexual, affectionate, or romantic attractions” primarily or exclusively to people of the same sex. “It also refers to an individual’s sense of personal and social identity based on those attractions, behaviors expressing them, and membership in a community of others who share them.”^[1][2]

Homosexuality is one of the three main categories of sexual orientation, along with bisexuality and heterosexuality, within the heterosexual–homosexual continuum (with asexuality sometimes considered a fourth). Scientific and medical understanding is that sexual orientation is not a choice, but rather a complex interplay of biological and environmental factors,^[1][3] especially with regard to early uterine environment.^[4] While there are those who still hold the view that homosexual activity is “unnatural” or “dysfunctional”,^[5][6] research has shown that homosexuality is an example of a normal and natural variation in human sexuality and is not in and of itself a source of negative psychological effects.^[1][7] Prejudice and discrimination against homosexual and bisexual people (homophobia) have, however, been shown to cause significant psychological harm, and are especially damaging to children who are homosexual or bisexual.^[7][8]

The most common terms for homosexual people are lesbian for females and gay for males, though gay is also used to refer generally to both homosexual males and females. The number of people who identify as gay or lesbian and the proportion of people who have same-sex sexual experiences are difficult for researchers to estimate reliably for a variety of reasons, including many gay people not openly identifying as such due to homophobia and heterosexist discrimination.^[9] Homosexual behavior has also been documented and is observed in many non-human animal species.^{[10][11][12][13][14]}

Many gay and lesbian people are in committed same-sex relationships, though only recently have census forms and political conditions facilitated their visibility and enumeration.^{[15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23][24]} These relationships are equivalent to heterosexual relationships in essential psychological respects.^[2] Homosexual relationships and acts have been admired, as well as condemned, throughout recorded history, depending on the form they took and the culture in which they occurred.^[25] Since the end of the 19th century, there has been a global movement towards increased visibility, recognition, and legal rights for homosexual people, including the rights to marriage and civil unions, adoption and parenting, employment, military service, equal access to health care, and the introduction of anti-bullying legislation to protect gay minors.

Etymology

Zephyrus and Hyacinthus
Attic red-figure cup from Tarquinia, 480 BC (Boston Museum of Fine Arts)

The word homosexual is a Greek and Latin hybrid, with the first element derived from Greek ὁμός homos, ‘same’ (not related to the Latin homo, ‘man’, as in Homo sapiens), thus connoting sexual acts and affections between members of the same sex, including lesbianism.^[26][27] The first known appearance of homosexual in print is found in an 1869 German pamphlet by the Austrian-born novelist Karl-Maria Kertbeny, published anonymously,^[28] arguing against a Prussian anti-sodomy law.^[28][29] In 1879, Gustav Jäger used Kertbeny’s terms in his book, Discovery of the Soul (1880).^[30] In 1886, Richard von Krafft-Ebing used the terms homosexual and heterosexual in his book Psychopathia Sexualis, probably borrowing them from Jäger. Krafft-Ebing’s book was so popular among both layman and doctors that the terms “heterosexual” and “homosexual” became the most widely accepted terms for sexual orientation.^[31][32] As such, the current use of the term has its roots in the broader 19th-century tradition of personality taxonomy.

Many modern style guides in the U.S. recommend against using homosexual as a noun, instead using gay man or lesbian.^[33] Similarly, some recommend completely avoiding usage of homosexual as it has a negative, clinical history and because the word only refers to one’s sexual behavior (as opposed to romantic feelings) and thus it has a negative connotation.^[33] Gay and lesbian are the most common alternatives. The first letters are frequently combined to create the initialism LGBT (sometimes written as GLBT), in which B and T refer to bisexual and transgender people.

Although early writers also used the adjective homosexual to refer to any single-sex context (such as an all-girls school), today the term is used exclusively in reference to sexual attraction, activity, and orientation. The term homosocial is now used to describe single-sex contexts that are not specifically sexual. There is also a word referring to same-sex love, homophilia.

Some synonyms for same-sex attraction or sexual activity include men who have sex with men or MSM (used in the medical community when specifically discussing sexual activity) and homoerotic (referring to works of art).^[34][35] Pejorative terms in English include queer, faggot, fairy, poof, and homo.^{[36][37][38][39]} Beginning in the 1990s, some of these have been reclaimed as positive words by gay men and lesbians, as in the usage of queer studies, queer theory, and even the popular American television program Queer Eye for the Straight Guy.^[40] The word homo occurs in many other languages without the pejorative connotations it has in English.^[41] As with ethnic slurs and racial slurs, however, the misuse of these terms can still be highly offensive; the range of acceptable use depends on the context and speaker.^[42] Conversely, gay, a word originally embraced by homosexual men and women as a positive, affirmative term (as in gay liberation and gay rights),^[43] has come into widespread pejorative use among young people.^[44]

History

Societal attitudes towards same-sex relationships have varied over time and place, from expecting all males to engage in same-sex relationships, to casual integration, through acceptance, to seeing the practice as a minor sin, repressing it through law enforcement and judicial mechanisms, and to proscribing it under penalty of death.

In a detailed compilation of historical and ethnographic materials of Preindustrial Cultures, “strong disapproval of homosexuality was reported for 41% of 42 cultures; it was accepted or ignored by 21%, and 12% reported no such concept. Of 70 ethnographies, 59% reported homosexuality absent or rare in frequency and 41% reported it present or not uncommon.”^[45]

In cultures influenced by Abrahamic religions, the law and the church established sodomy as a transgression against divine law or a crime against nature. The condemnation of anal sex between males, however, predates Christian belief. It was frequent in ancient Greece; “unnatural” can be traced back to Plato.^[46]

Many historical figures, including Socrates, Lord Byron, Edward II, and Hadrian,^[47] have had terms such as gay or bisexual applied to them; some scholars, such as Michel Foucault, have regarded this as risking the anachronistic introduction of a contemporary construction of sexuality foreign to their times,^[48] though others challenge this.^[49]

Regarding homosexuality nature and historic expression there are two seemingly opposite positions. These are represented by a constructionist and an essentialist approach. In general Social constructionism considers that there are “social constructions” resulting from the many characteristics of a particular social group, and not from some essential nature of the individual self. On the other hand Essentialists defend the existence of real essences that define the individual’s expressions, and social learned aspects are only secondary. David M. Halperin devotes a chapter:Homosexuality: a cultural construct of his work One Hundred Years of Homosexuality to this subject.^[50] He says that the essentialism applied to sexual categories means that the terms like “gay” or “straight” refer to culturally not modifiable, essentially personal traits. On the contrary, Constructionists mean that these terms are the names of social processes. Halperin leans towards this last position, as he considers that sexuality, including homosexuality, has been expressed in essentially different ways in different historic societies, as it is in present day ones. He, nevertheless, cites Esteven Epstein ^[51] that compares the controversy between essentialists and constructionists to the general nature versus nurture debate. As one of the main representatives of essentialists he cites John Boswell, and Michel Foucault as a prominent constructionist.^[52]

Gay generally refers to male homosexuality, but may be used in a broader sense to refer to all LGBT people. In the context of sexuality, lesbian refers only to female homosexuality. The word “lesbian” is derived from the name of the Greek island Lesbos, where the poet Sappho wrote largely about her emotional relationships with young women.^[53][54]

Africa

Though often ignored or suppressed by European explorers and colonialists, homosexual expression in native Africa was also present and took a variety of forms. Anthropologists Stephen Murray and Will Roscoe reported that women in Lesotho engaged in socially sanctioned “long term, erotic relationships” called motsoalle.^[55] E. E. Evans-Pritchard also recorded that male Azande warriors in the northern Congo routinely took on young male lovers between the ages of twelve and twenty, who helped with household tasks and participated in intercrural sex with their older husbands. The practice had died out by the early 20th century, after Europeans had gained control of African countries, but was recounted to Evans-Pritchard by the elders to whom he spoke.^[56]

The first record of possible homosexual couple in history is commonly regarded as Khnumhotep and Niankhkhnum, an Egyptian male couple, who lived around 2400 BCE. The pair are portrayed in a nose-kissing position, the most intimate pose in Egyptian art, surrounded by what appear to be their heirs.

Americas

Dance to the Berdache
Sac and Fox Nation ceremonial dance to celebrate the two-spirit person. George Catlin (1796–1872); Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC

Among indigenous peoples of the Americas prior to European colonization, a common form of same-sex sexuality centered around the figure of the Two-Spirit individual. Typically this individual was recognized early in life, given a choice by the parents to follow the path and, if the child accepted the role, raised in the appropriate manner, learning the customs of the gender it had chosen. Two-Spirit individuals were commonly shamans and were revered as having powers beyond those of ordinary shamans. Their sexual life was with the ordinary tribe members of the same sex.

Homosexual and transgender individuals were also common among other pre-conquest civilizations in Latin America, such as the Aztecs, Mayans, Quechuas, Moches, Zapotecs, and the Tupinambá of Brazil.^[57][58]

A woman spying on a pair of male lovers. China, Qing Dynasty.

The Spanish conquerors were horrified to discover sodomy openly practiced among native peoples, and attempted to crush it out by subjecting the berdaches (as the Spanish called them) under their rule to severe penalties, including public execution, burning and being torn to pieces by dogs.^[59]

East Asia

In East Asia, same-sex love has been referred to since the earliest recorded history.

Homosexuality in China, known as the passions of the cut peach and various other euphemisms has been recorded since approximately 600 BCE. Homosexuality was mentioned in many famous works of Chinese literature. The instances of same-sex affection and sexual interactions described in the classical novel Dream of the Red Chamber seem as familiar to observers in the present as do equivalent stories of romances between heterosexual people during the same period. Confucianism, being primarily a social and political philosophy, focused little on sexuality, whether homosexual or heterosexual. Opposition to homosexuality in China originates in the medieval Tang Dynasty (618-907), attributed to the rising influence of Christian and Islamic values,^[60] but did not become fully established until the Westernization efforts of the late Qing Dynasty and the Republic of China.^[61]

Homosexuality in Japan, variously known as shudo or nanshoku has been documented for over one thousand years and was an integral part of Buddhist monastic life and the samurai tradition. This same-sex love culture gave rise to strong traditions of painting and literature documenting and celebrating such relationships.

Similarly, in Thailand, Kathoey, or “ladyboys”, have been a feature of Thai society for many centuries, and Thai kings had male as well as female lovers^{[citation needed]}. While Kathoey may encompass simple effeminacy or transvestism, it most commonly is treated in Thai culture as a third gender. They are generally accepted by society^{[citation needed]}, and Thailand has never had legal prohibitions against homosexuality or homosexual behavior.

South Asia

Gay sex in threesome with one woman and two men. Miniature from an Urdu text, Mughal India.

The Laws of Manu, the foundational work of Hindu law, mentions a “third sex”, members of which may engage in nontraditional gender expression and homosexual activities.^[62] The Hijra are a caste of third-gender, or transgender group who live a feminine role. Hijra may be born male or intersex, and some may have been born female.

Throughout Hindu and Vedic texts there are many descriptions of saints, demigods, and even the Supreme Lord transcending gender norms and manifesting multiple combinations of sex and gender.^[63] There are several instances in ancient Indian epic poetry of same sex depictions and unions by gods and goddesses. There are several stories of depicting love between same sexes especially among kings and queens. Kama Sutra, the ancient Indian treatise on love talks about feelings for same sexes. Transsexuals are also venerated e.g. Lord Vishnu as Mohini and Lord Shiva as Ardhanarishvara (which means half woman).^[64]

Europe

The earliest Western documents (in the form of literary works, art objects, and mythographic materials) concerning same-sex relationships are derived from ancient Greece.

In regard of male homosexuality such documents depict a world in which relationships with women and relationships with youths were the essential foundation of a normal man’s love life. Same-sex relationships were a social institution variously constructed over time and from one city to another. The formal practice, an erotic yet often restrained relationship between a free adult male and a free adolescent, was valued for its pedagogic benefits and as a means of population control, though occasionally blamed for causing disorder. Plato praised its benefits in his early writings^[65] but in his late works proposed its prohibition.^[66] In the Symposium (182B-D), Plato equates acceptance of homosexuality with democracy, and its suppression with despotism, saying that homosexuality “is shameful to barbarians because of their despotic governments, just as philosophy and athletics are, since it is apparently not in best interests of such rulers to have great ideas engendered in their subjects, or powerful friendships or physical unions, all of which love is particularly apt to produce”.^[67] Aristotle, in the Politics, dismissed Plato’s ideas about abolishing homosexuality (2.4); he explains that barbarians like the Celts accorded it a special honor (2.6.6), while the Cretans used it to regulate the population (2.7.5).^[67]

Female youths are depicted surrounding Sappho in this painting of Lafond “Sappho sings for Homer”, 1824.

Little is known of female homosexuality in antiquity. Sappho, born on the island of Lesbos, was included by later Greeks in the canonical list of nine lyric poets. The adjectives deriving from her name and place of birth (Sapphic and Lesbian) came to be applied to female homosexuality beginning in the 19th century.^[68][69] Sappho’s poetry centers on passion and love for various personages and both genders. The narrators of many of her poems speak of infatuations and love (sometimes requited, sometimes not) for various females, but descriptions of physical acts between women are few and subject to debate.^[70][71]

Sappho reading to her companions on an Attic vase of c. 435 BC.

In Ancient Rome the young male body remained a focus of male sexual attention, but relationships were between older free men and slaves or freed youths who took the receptive role in sex. All the emperors with the exception of Claudius took male lovers. The Hellenophile emperor Hadrian is renowned for his relationship with Antinous, but the Christian emperor Theodosius I decreed a law on August 6, 390, condemning passive males to be burned at the stake. Justinian, towards the end of his reign, expanded the proscription to the active partner as well (in 558), warning that such conduct can lead to the destruction of cities through the “wrath of God”. Notwithstanding these regulations, taxes on brothels of boys available for homosexual sex continued to be collected until the end of the reign of Anastasius I in 518.

During the Renaissance, wealthy cities in northern Italy — Florence and Venice in particular — were renowned for their widespread practice of same-sex love, engaged in by a considerable part of the male population and constructed along the classical pattern of Greece and Rome.^[72][73] But even as many of the male population were engaging in same-sex relationships, the authorities, under the aegis of the Officers of the Night court, were prosecuting, fining, and imprisoning a good portion of that population. From the second half of the 13th century, death was the punishment for male homosexuality in most of Europe.^[74] The eclipse of this period of relative artistic and erotic freedom was precipitated by the rise to power of the moralizing monk Girolamo Savonarola. In northern Europe the artistic discourse on sodomy was turned against its proponents by artists such as Rembrandt, who in his Rape of Ganymede no longer depicted Ganymede as a willing youth, but as a squalling baby attacked by a rapacious bird of prey.

The relationships of socially prominent figures, such as King James I and the Duke of Buckingham, served to highlight the issue, including in anonymously authored street pamphlets: “The world is chang’d I know not how, For men Kiss Men, not Women now;…Of J. the First and Buckingham: He, true it is, his Wives Embraces fled, To slabber his lov’d Ganimede” (Mundus Foppensis, or The Fop Display’d, 1691).

Love Letters Between a Certain Late Nobleman and the Famous Mr. Wilson was published in 1723 in England and was presumed by some modern scholars to be a novel. The 1749 edition of John Cleland‘s popular novel Fanny Hill includes a homosexual scene, but this was removed in its 1750 edition. Also in 1749, the earliest extended and serious defense of homosexuality in English, Ancient and Modern Pederasty Investigated and Exemplified, written by Thomas Cannon, was published, but was suppressed almost immediately. It includes the passage, “Unnatural Desire is a Contradiction in Terms; downright Nonsense. Desire is an amatory Impulse of the inmost human Parts.”^[75] Around 1785 Jeremy Bentham wrote another defense, but this was not published until 1978.^[76] Executions for sodomy continued in the Netherlands until 1803, and in England until 1835.

Between 1864 and 1880 Karl Heinrich Ulrichs published a series of twelve tracts, which he collectively titled Research on the Riddle of Man-Manly Love. In 1867, he became the first self-proclaimed homosexual person to speak out publicly in defense of homosexuality when he pleaded at the Congress of German Jurists in Munich for a resolution urging the repeal of anti-homosexual laws.^[9] Sexual Inversion by Havelock Ellis, published in 1896, challenged theories that homosexuality was abnormal, as well as stereotypes, and insisted on the ubiquity of homosexuality and its association with intellectual and artistic achievement.^[77] Although medical texts like these (written partly in Latin to obscure the sexual details) were not widely read by the general public, they did lead to the rise of Magnus Hirschfeld‘s Scientific-Humanitarian Committee, which campaigned from 1897 to 1933 against anti-sodomy laws in Germany, as well as a much more informal, unpublicized movement among British intellectuals and writers, led by such figures as Edward Carpenter and John Addington Symonds. Beginning in 1894 with Homogenic Love, Socialist activist and poet Edward Carpenter wrote a string of pro-homosexual articles and pamphlets, and “came out” in 1916 in his book My Days and Dreams. In 1900, Elisar von Kupffer published an anthology of homosexual literature from antiquity to his own time, Lieblingminne und Freundesliebe in der Weltliteratur.

Middle East

Dance of a bacchá (dancing boy)
Samarkand, (ca 1905–1915), photo Sergei Mikhailovich Prokudin-Gorskii. Library of Congress, Washington, DC.

In the ancient Assyrian society, homosexuality was present and common; it was also not prohibited. Instead, some ancient religious Assyrian texts contain prayers for divine blessings on homosexual relationships.^[78]Assyrian priests were often cross-dressing homosexual men.^[79]

Among some Middle Eastern Muslim cultures, egalitarian or age-structured homosexual practices were widespread and thinly veiled. The prevailing pattern of same-sex relationships in the temperate and sub-tropical zone stretching from Northern India to the Western Sahara is one in which the relationships were—and are—either gender-structured or age-structured or both. In recent years, egalitarian relationships modeled on the western pattern have become more frequent, though they remain rare. Same-sex intercourse officially carries the death penalty in several Muslim nations: Saudi Arabia, Iran, Mauritania, northern Nigeria, Sudan, and Yemen.^[80]

Israel is considered the most tolerant country in the Middle East and Asia to homosexuals,^[81] while the Israeli city Tel Aviv has been named “the gay capital of the Middle East,”^[82] and is considered one of the most gay friendly cities in the world.^[83] The annual Pride Parade in support of homosexuality takes place in Tel Aviv.^[84]

Some scholars argue that there are examples of homosexual love in ancient literature, like in the Mesopotamian Epic of Gilgamesh as well as in the Biblical story of David and Jonathan. In the Epic of Gilgamesh, the relationship between the main protagonist Gilgamesh and the character Enkidu has been seen by some to be homosexual in nature.^{[85][86][87][88]} Similarly, David’s love for Jonathan is “greater than the love of women.”^[89]

Ottoman illustration depicting a young man used for group sex (from Sawaqub al-Manaquib)

There are a handful of accounts by Arab travelers to Europe during the mid-1800s. Two of these travelers, Rifa’ah al-Tahtawi and Muhammad sl-Saffar, show their surprise that the French sometimes deliberately mis-translated love poetry about a young boy, instead referring to a young female, to maintain their social norms and morals.^[90]

In Persia, homosexuality and homoerotic expressions were tolerated in numerous public places, from monasteries and seminaries to taverns, military camps, bathhouses, and coffee houses. In the early Safavid era (1501–1723), male houses of prostitution (amrad khane) were legally recognized and paid taxes.

Today, governments in the Middle East often ignore, deny the existence of, or criminalize homosexuality. Homosexuality is illegal in almost all Muslim countries.^[91] Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, during his 2007 speech at Columbia University, asserted that there were no gay people in Iran. However, the probable reason is that they keep their sexuality a secret for fear of government sanction or rejection by their families.^[92]

South Pacific

In many societies of Melanesia, especially in Papua New Guinea, same-sex relationships were an integral part of the culture until the middle of the last century. The Etoro and Marind-anim for example, even viewed heterosexuality as sinful and celebrated homosexuality instead. In many traditional Melanesian cultures a prepubertal boy would be paired with an older adolescent who would become his mentor and who would “inseminate” him (orally, anally, or topically, depending on the tribe) over a number of years in order for the younger to also reach puberty. Many Melanesian societies, however, have become hostile towards same-sex relationships since the introduction of Christianity by European missionaries.^[93]

Sexuality and identity

Kinsey scale

The Kinsey scale, also called the Heterosexual-Homosexual Rating Scale,^[94] attempts to describe a person’s sexual history or episodes of his or her sexual activity at a given time. It uses a scale from 0, meaning exclusively heterosexual, to 6, meaning exclusively homosexual. In both the Male and Female volumes of the Kinsey Reports, an additional grade, listed as “X”, was used for asexuality.^[95][96]

Orientation and behavior

The American Psychological Association, the American Psychiatric Association, and the National Association of Social Workers identify sexual orientation as “not merely a personal characteristic that can be defined in isolation. Rather, one’s sexual orientation defines the universe of persons with whom one is likely to find the satisfying and fulfilling relationships”:^[2]

Sexual orientation is commonly discussed as a characteristic of the individual, like biological sex, gender identity, or age. This perspective is incomplete because sexual orientation is always defined in relational terms and necessarily involves relationships with other individuals. Sexual acts and romantic attractions are categorized as homosexual or heterosexual according to the biological sex of the individuals involved in them, relative to each other. Indeed, it is by acting—or desiring to act—with another person that individuals express their heterosexuality, homosexuality, or bisexuality. This includes actions as simple as holding hands with or kissing another person. Thus, sexual orientation is integrally linked to the intimate personal relationships that human beings form with others to meet their deeply felt needs for love, attachment, and intimacy. In addition to sexual behavior, these bonds encompass nonsexual physical affection between partners, shared goals and values, mutual support, and ongoing commitment.^[2]

Coming out of the closet

“Coming out (of the closet)” is a phrase which refers to one’s disclosure of their sexual orientation or gender identity, and is described and experienced variously as a psychological process or journey.^[97] Generally, coming out is described in three phases. The first phase is the phase of “knowing oneself”, and the realization emerges that one is open to same-sex relations.^[98] This is often described as an internal coming out. The second phase involves one’s decision to come out to others, e.g. family, friends, or colleagues. The third phase more generally involves living openly as an LGBT person.^[99] In the United States today, people often come out during high school or college age. At this age, they may not trust or ask for help from others, especially when their orientation is not accepted in society. Sometimes their own families are not even informed.

According to Rosario, Schrimshaw, Hunter, Braun (2006), “the development of a lesbian, gay, or bisexual (LGB) sexual identity is a complex and often difficult process. Unlike members of other minority groups (e.g., ethnic and racial minorities), most LGB individuals are not raised in a community of similar others from whom they learn about their identity and who reinforce and support that identity. Rather, LGB individuals are often raised in communities that are either ignorant of or openly hostile toward homosexuality.”^[100]

Outing is the practice of publicly revealing the sexual orientation of a closeted person.^[101] Notable politicians, celebrities, military service people, and clergy members have been outed, with motives ranging from malice to political or moral beliefs. Many commentators oppose the practice altogether,^[102] while some encourage outing public figures who use their positions of influence to harm other gay people.^[103]

Gender identity

The earliest writers on a homosexual orientation usually understood it to be intrinsically linked to the subject’s own sex. For example, it was thought that a typical female-bodied person who is attracted to female-bodied persons would have masculine attributes, and vice versa.^[104] This understanding was shared by most of the significant theorists of homosexuality from the mid-19th century to early 20th century, such as Karl Heinrich Ulrichs, Richard von Krafft-Ebing, Magnus Hirschfeld, Havelock Ellis, Carl Jung and Sigmund Freud, as well as many gender variant homosexual people themselves. However, this understanding of homosexuality as sexual inversion was disputed at the time, and through the second half of the 20th century, gender identity came to be increasingly seen as a phenomenon distinct from sexual orientation.

Transgender and cisgender people may be attracted to men, women or both, although the prevalence of different sexual orientations is quite different in these two populations (see sexual orientation of transwomen). An individual homosexual, heterosexual or bisexual person may be masculine, feminine, or androgynous, and in addition, many members and supporters of lesbian and gay communities now see the “gender-conforming heterosexual” and the “gender-nonconforming homosexual” as negative stereotypes. However, studies by J. Michael Bailey and K.J. Zucker have found that a majority of gay men and lesbians report being gender-nonconforming during their childhood years.^[105] Richard C. Friedman, in Male Homosexuality published in 1990,^[106] writing from a psychoanalytic perspective, argues that sexual desire begins later than the writings of Sigmund Freud indicate, not in infancy but between the ages of 5 and 10 and is not focused on a parent figure but on peers. As a consequence, he reasons, homosexual men are not abnormal, never having been sexually attracted to their mothers anyway.^[107]

Same-sex relationships

Male homosexuality symbol

People with a homosexual orientation can express their sexuality in a variety of ways, and may or may not express it in their behaviors.^[1] Many have sexual relationships predominately with people of their own gender identity, though some have sexual relationships with those of the opposite gender, bisexual relationships, or none at all (celibate).^[1] The Kinsey scale attempts to describe a person’s sexual history or episodes of their sexual activity at a given time. It uses a scale from 0, meaning exclusively heterosexual, to 6, meaning exclusively homosexual. It is based on actual sexual behavior surveys. Research indicates that many lesbians and gay men want, and succeed in having, committed and durable relationships. For example, survey data indicate that between 40% and 60% of gay men and between 45% and 80% of lesbians are currently involved in a romantic relationship.^[108] Survey data also indicate that between 18% and 28% of gay couples and between 8% and 21% of lesbian couples in the U.S. have lived together ten or more years.^[108] Studies have found same-sex and opposite-sex couples to be equivalent to each other in measures of satisfaction and commitment in relationships, that age and gender are more reliable than sexual orientation as a predictor of satisfaction and commitment to a relationship, and that people who are heterosexual or homosexual share comparable expectations and ideals with regard to romantic relationships.^{[109][110][111]}

Demographics

Reliable data as to the size of the gay and lesbian population are of value in informing public policy.^[112] For example, demographics would help in calculating the costs and benefits of domestic partnership benefits, of the impact of legalizing gay adoption, and of the impact of the U.S. military’s Don’t Ask Don’t Tell policy.^[112] Further, knowledge of the size of the “gay and lesbian population holds promise for helping social scientists understand a wide array of important questions—questions about the general nature of labor market choices, accumulation of human capital, specialization within households, discrimination, and decisions about geographic location.”^[112]

Measuring the prevalence of homosexuality presents difficulties. It is necessary to consider the measuring criteria that is used, the cutoff point and the time span taken to define a sexual orientation.^[9] Many people, despite having same-sex attractions, may be reluctant to identify themselves as gay or bisexual. The research must measure some characteristic that may or may not be defining of sexual orientation. The number of people with same-sex desires may be larger than the number of people who act on those desires, which in turn may be larger than the number of people who self-identify as gay, lesbian, or bisexual.^[112]

In 1948 and 1953, Alfred Kinsey reported that nearly 46% of the male subjects had “reacted” sexually to persons of both sexes in the course of their adult lives, and 37% had had at least one homosexual experience.^[113][114] Kinsey’s methodology was criticized.^[115][116] A later study tried to eliminate the sample bias, but still reached similar conclusions.^[117] LeVay cites these Kinsey results as an example of the caution needed to interpret demographic studies, as they may give quite differing numbers depending on what criteria are used to conduct them, in spite of using sound scientific methods.^[9]

Estimates of the occurrence of same-sex behavior range from 2 to 10 percent of the population.^{[118][119][120][121][122][123][124]} A 1992 study reported that 6.1% of males in Britain have had a homosexual experience, while in France the number was reported at 4.1%.^[125] In New Zealand, a 2006 study suggested that 20% of the population anonymously reported some homosexual feelings with few of them identifying as homosexual. Percentage of persons identifying as homosexual was 2–3%.^[123] According to a 2008 poll, 13% of Britons have had some form of same-sex sexual contact while only 6% of Britons identify themselves as either homosexual or bisexual.^[126] Contrastingly, a survey by the UK Office for National Statistics (ONS) in 2010 found that 1.5% of Britons identified themselves as gay or bisexual, and the ONS suggests that this is in line with other surveys showing the number between 0.3% and 3%.^[114][127]

According to major studies, 2% to 10% of people have had some form of same-sex sexual contact within their lifetime.^{[118][119][120][121][122][128][129][130][131]} In a 2006 study, 20% of respondents anonymously reported some homosexual feelings, although only 2-3% identified themselves as homosexual.^[123]

In the United States, according to exit polling on 2008 Election Day for the 2008 presidential election, 4% of the national electorate self-identified as gay, lesbian, or bisexual, the same percentage as in 2004.^[132] According to the 2000 United States Census there were about 601,209 same-sex unmarried partner households.^[133] In the 2012 presidential election, 5% of the national electorate openly identified themselves as lesbian, gay, or bisexual.

Psychology

Psychology was one of the first disciplines to study a homosexual orientation as a discrete phenomenon. The first attempts to classify homosexuality as a disease were made by the fledgling European sexologist movement in the late 19th century. In 1886 noted sexologist Richard von Krafft-Ebing listed homosexuality along with 200 other case studies of deviant sexual practices in his definitive work, Psychopathia Sexualis. Krafft-Ebing proposed that homosexuality was caused by either “congenital [during birth] inversion” or an “acquired inversion”. In the last two decades of the 19th century, a different view began to predominate in medical and psychiatric circles, judging such behavior as indicative of a type of person with a defined and relatively stable sexual orientation. In the late 19th century and early 20th century, pathological models of homosexuality were standard.

The American Psychological Association, the American Psychiatric Association, and the National Association of Social Workers state:

^[4] The longstanding consensus of research and clinical literature demonstrates that same-sex sexual and romantic attractions, feelings, and behaviors are normal and positive variations of human sexuality.^[135] There is now a large body of research evidence that indicates that being gay, lesbian or bisexual is compatible with normal mental health and social adjustment.^[4] The World Health Organization‘s ICD-9 (1977) listed homosexuality as a mental illness; it was removed from the ICD-10, endorsed by the Forty-third World Health Assembly on May 17, 1990.^{[136][137][138]} Like the DSM-II, the ICD-10 added ego-dystonic sexual orientation to the list, which refers to people who want to change their gender identities or sexual orientation because of a psychological or behavioral disorder (F66.1). The Chinese Society of Psychiatry removed homosexuality from its Chinese Classification of Mental Disorders in 2001 after five years of study by the association.^[139] According to the Royal College of Psychiatrists “This unfortunate history demonstrates how marginalisation of a group of people who have a particular personality feature (in this case homosexuality) can lead to harmful medical practice and a basis for discrimination in society.^[4] There is now a large body of research evidence that indicates that being gay, lesbian or bisexual is compatible with normal mental health and social adjustment. However, the experiences of discrimination in society and possible rejection by friends, families and others, such as employers, means that some LGB people experience a greater than expected prevalence of mental health difficulties and substance misuse problems. Although there have been claims by conservative political groups in the USA that this higher prevalence of mental health difficulties is confirmation that homosexuality is itself a mental disorder, there is no evidence whatever to substantiate such a claim.”^[140]

Most lesbian, gay, and bisexual people who seek psychotherapy do so for the same reasons as heterosexual people (stress, relationship difficulties, difficulty adjusting to social or work situations, etc.); their sexual orientation may be of primary, incidental, or no importance to their issues and treatment. Whatever the issue, there is a high risk for anti-gay bias in psychotherapy with lesbian, gay, and bisexual clients.^[141] Psychological research in this area has been relevant to counteracting prejudicial (“homophobic“) attitudes and actions, and to the LGBT rights movement generally.^[142]

The appropriate application of affirmative psychotherapy is based on the following scientific facts:^[135]

• Same-sex sexual attractions, behavior, and orientations per se are normal and positive variants of human sexuality; in other words, they are not indicators of mental or developmental disorders.
• Homosexuality and bisexuality are stigmatized, and this stigma can have a variety of negative consequences (e.g., Minority Stress) throughout the life span (D’Augelli & Patterson, 1995; DiPlacido, 1998; Herek & Garnets, 2007; Meyer, 1995, 2003).
• Same-sex sexual attractions and behavior can occur in the context of a variety of sexual orientations and sexual orientation identities (Diamond, 2006; Hoburg et al., 2004; Rust, 1996; Savin-Williams, 2005).
• Gay men, lesbians, and bisexual individuals can live satisfying lives as well as form stable, committed relationships and families that are equivalent to heterosexual relationships in essential respects (APA, 2005c; Kurdek, 2001, 2003, 2004; Peplau & Fingerhut, 2007).
• There are no empirical studies or peer-reviewed research that support theories attributing same-sex sexual orientation to family dysfunction or trauma (Bell et al., 1981; Bene, 1965; Freund & Blanchard, 1983; Freund & Pinkava, 1961; Hooker, 1969; McCord et al., 1962; D. K. Peters & Cantrell, 1991; Siegelman, 1974, 1981; Townes et al., 1976).

Cause

General

The causes of homosexuality, and more generically the causes of human sexual orientation, have been the subject of abundant scientific inquiry, and the activity has been developed mainly in the direction of biological and environmental factors. The biological factors that have been researched are genetic and hormonal, particularly during the fetal developmental period, that influence the resulting brain structure, and other characteristics such as handedness.^[3][4] There are a wide range of environmental factors (sociological, psychological, or early uterine environment), and various biological factors, that may influence sexual orientation; though many researchers believe that it is caused by a complex interplay between nature and nurture, they favor biological models for the cause.^[1][3]

The American Academy of Pediatrics stated in Pediatrics in 2004:

The American Psychological Association, American Psychiatric Association, and National Association of Social Workers stated in 2006:

The Royal College of Psychiatrists stated in 2007:

The American Psychological Association states “there are probably many reasons for a person’s sexual orientation and the reasons may be different for different people”, and says most people’s sexual orientation is determined at an early age.^[1] Research into how sexual orientation in males may be determined by genetic or other prenatal factors plays a role in political and social debates about homosexuality, and also raises concerns about genetic profiling and prenatal testing.^[145]

Professor Michael King states: “The conclusion reached by scientists who have investigated the origins and stability of sexual orientation is that it is a human characteristic that is formed early in life, and is resistant to change. Scientific evidence on the origins of homosexuality is considered relevant to theological and social debate because it undermines suggestions that sexual orientation is a choice.”^[146]

Innate bisexuality (or predisposition to bisexuality) is a term introduced by Sigmund Freud, based on work by his associate Wilhelm Fliess, that expounds that all humans are born bisexual but through psychological development—which includes both external and internal factors—become monosexual, while the bisexuality remains in a latent state.

Garcia-Falgueras and Swaab state in the abstract of their 2010 study, “The fetal brain develops during the intrauterine period in the male direction through a direct action of testosterone on the developing nerve cells, or in the female direction through the absence of this hormone surge. In this way, our gender identity (the conviction of belonging to the male or female gender) and sexual orientation are programmed or organized into our brain structures when we are still in the womb. There is no indication that social environment after birth has an effect on gender identity or sexual orientation.”^[147]

Evolutionary perspectives

The authors of a 2008 study stated “there is considerable evidence that human sexual orientation is genetically influenced, so it is not known how homosexuality, which tends to lower reproductive success, is maintained in the population at a relatively high frequency”. They hypothesized that “while genes predisposing to homosexuality reduce homosexuals’ reproductive success, they may confer some advantage in heterosexuals who carry them”. Their results suggested that “genes predisposing to homosexuality may confer a mating advantage in heterosexuals, which could help explain the evolution and maintenance of homosexuality in the population”.^[148] A 2009 study also suggested a significant increase in fecundity in the females related to the homosexual people from the maternal line (but not in those related from the paternal one).^[149]

A review paper by Bailey and Zuk looking into studies of same-sex sexual behaviour in animals challenges the view that such behaviour lowers reproductive success, citing several hypotheses about how same-sex sexual behavior might be adaptive; these hypotheses vary greatly among different species. Bailey and Zuk also suggest future research needs to look into evolutionary consequences of same-sex sexual behaviour, rather than only looking into origins of such behaviour.^[150]

Lesbian narratives and sexual orientation awareness

Lesbians often experience their sexuality differently from gay men, and have different understandings about etiology from those derived from studies focused mostly on men. For information specific to female homosexuality, see Lesbian.

In a U.S.-based 1970s mail survey by Shere Hite, lesbians self-reported their reasons for being lesbian. This is the only major piece of research into female sexuality that has looked at how women understand being homosexual since Kinsey in 1953. The research yielded information about women’s general understanding of lesbian relationships and their sexual orientation.

Women talked about social conditioning, which made it “almost impossible for me to have a truly healthy sexual relationship with a man”.^[151] Another woman stated that because of their conditioning “[w]omen are much more sensitive to other people’s needs”, and so “[s]ex is better with women physically and emotionally”, stating she preferred the symmetries of power and aesthetic between women.^[151] Some talked about preferring women, “[p]ersonally, I like girls better, they are more tender and loving”,^[151] and some went into how they found that emotional relationships with women were more satisfying than those with men, with women making more creative and versatile lovers. One woman reported it was easier for her “to give myself emotionally to a woman”.^[151] A woman who had been a lesbian for two years said she found that sexual relationships with women were more pleasurable on both psychological and physical levels than with men; this was “because the women I’ve had sex with have been my friends first, which was never the case with men. Being friends sets up a trust that I think is essential for satisfying physical intimacy. Relating to another woman physically seems to me like the most natural thing in the world. You’ve already got a head start on knowing how to give her pleasure. Gentleness seems to be the key, and is the main difference between relating to men and women.’”^[151] Women talked about women making better sexual partners and that was a dominant theme: “I find women better lovers; they know what a woman wants and most of all there is an emotional closeness that can never be matched with a man. More tenderness, more consideration and understanding of feelings, etc.”^[151] This was because men were perceived as unliberated “sexually or emotionally or any other way”, and lesbianism was perceived “as an alternative to abstinence” and to men generally.^[151] Men were perceived as usually juvenile, while a relationship with women was described as “more of a communion with self”.^[151] Sex as well as relationships with women were seen as a way of achieving independence from men; “[s]ex with a woman means independence from men.”^[151] Male sexual performance was another problem, “[t]wenty minutes for a man, at least an hour with a woman, usually more”,^[151] as well as attention to the sexual needs of women who themselves “seem to have a more sustained energy level after orgasm, and are more likely to know and do something about it if I’m not satisfied”.^[151] One understanding of the difference was that sex with women “is not an ‘exchange’ or a ‘trade’ or services”, and not focused on orgasm, with “more kissing and holding” and “more concern for my pleasure”, which was experienced as liberating. Sex with women was also seen as a political act; “I see lesbianism as putting all my energies (sexual, political social, etc.) into women. Sex is a form of comfort and to have sex indiscriminately with males is to give them comfort.”.^[151]

Hite is more concerned with what respondents say than quantifiable data. She found the two most significant differences between respondents’ experience with men and women were the focus on clitoral stimulation, and more emotional involvement and orgasmic responses.^[151] Since Hite carried out her study she has acknowledged that some women may have chosen the political identity of a lesbian. Julie Bindel, a UK journalist, reaffirmed that “political lesbianism continues to make intrinsic sense because it reinforces the idea that sexuality is a choice, and we are not destined to a particular fate because of our chromosomes.” as recently as 2009.^[152]

Sexual orientation change efforts

There are no studies of adequate scientific rigor to conclude whether recent sexual orientation change efforts do work to change a person’s sexual orientation. Those efforts have been controversial due to tensions between the values held by some faith-based organizations, on the one hand, and those held by LGBT rights organizations and professional and scientific organizations and other faith-based organizations, on the other. The longstanding consensus of the behavioral and social sciences and the health and mental health professions is that homosexuality per se is a normal and positive variation of human sexual orientation, and therefore not a mental disorder.^[8] The American Psychological Association says that “most people experience little or no sense of choice about their sexual orientation”.^[153] Some individuals and groups have promoted the idea of homosexuality as symptomatic of developmental defects or spiritual and moral failings and have argued that sexual orientation change efforts, including psychotherapy and religious efforts, could alter homosexual feelings and behaviors. Many of these individuals and groups appeared to be embedded within the larger context of conservative religious political movements that have supported the stigmatization of homosexuality on political or religious grounds.^[8]

No major mental health professional organization has sanctioned efforts to change sexual orientation and virtually all of them have adopted policy statements cautioning the profession and the public about treatments that purport to change sexual orientation. These include the American Psychiatric Association, American Psychological Association, American Counseling Association, National Association of Social Workers in the USA,^[154] the Royal College of Psychiatrists,^[155] and the Australian Psychological Society.^[156] The American Psychological Association and the Royal College of Psychiatrists expressed concerns that the positions espoused by NARTH are not supported by the science and create an environment in which prejudice and discrimination can flourish.^[155][157]

The American Psychological Association “encourages mental health professionals to avoid misrepresenting the efficacy of sexual orientation change efforts by promoting or promising change in sexual orientation when providing assistance to individuals distressed by their own or others’ sexual orientation and concludes that the benefits reported by participants in sexual orientation change efforts can be gained through approaches that do not attempt to change sexual orientation”.^[158]

Fluidity of orientation

The American Psychiatric Association (APA) has stated “some people believe that sexual orientation is innate and fixed; however, sexual orientation develops across a person’s lifetime”.^[159] A report from the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health states: “For some people, sexual orientation is continuous and fixed throughout their lives. For others, sexual orientation may be fluid and change over time”.^[160] One study has suggested “considerable fluidity in bisexual, unlabeled, and lesbian women’s attractions, behaviors, and identities”.^[161][162]

Gender and fluidity

In a 2004 study, the female subjects (both gay and straight women) became sexually aroused when they viewed heterosexual as well as lesbian erotic films. Among the male subjects, however, the straight men were turned on only by erotic films with women, the gay ones by those with men. The study’s senior researcher said that women’s sexual desire is less rigidly directed toward a particular sex, as compared with men’s, and it’s more changeable over time.^[163]

Parenting

Scientific research has been generally consistent in showing that lesbian and gay parents are as fit and capable as heterosexual parents, and their children are as psychologically healthy and well-adjusted as children reared by heterosexual parents.^{[164][165][166]} According to scientific literature reviews, there is no evidence to the contrary.^{[2][167][168][169][170]}

Health

Physical

The terms “Men who have sex with men” (MSM) and “women who have sex with women” (WSW) refer to people who engage in sexual activity with others of the same sex regardless of how they identify themselves—as many choose not to accept social identities as lesbian, gay and bisexual.^{[171][172][173][174][175]} These terms are often used in medical literature and social research to describe such groups for study, without needing to consider the issues of sexual self-identity. The terms are seen as problematic, however, because they “obscure social dimensions of sexuality; undermine the self-labeling of lesbian, gay, and bisexual people; and do not sufficiently describe variations in sexual behavior”.^[176] MSM and WSW are sexually active with each other for a variety of reasons with the main ones arguably sexual pleasure, intimacy and bonding. In contrast to its benefits, sexual behavior can be a disease vector. Safe sex is a relevant harm reduction philosophy.^[177] The United States currently prohibits men who have sex with men from donating blood “because they are, as a group, at increased risk for HIV, hepatitis B and certain other infections that can be transmitted by transfusion.”^[178] The UK^[179] and many European countries have the same prohibition.^[178]

Public health

These safer sex recommendations are agreed upon by public health officials for women who have sex with women to avoid sexually transmitted infections (STIs):

• Avoid contact with a partner’s menstrual blood and with any visible genital lesions.
• Cover sex toys that penetrate more than one person’s vagina or anus with a new condom for each person; consider using different toys for each person.
• Use a barrier (e.g., latex sheet, dental dam, cut-open condom, plastic wrap) during oral sex.
• Use latex or vinyl gloves and lubricant for any manual sex that might cause bleeding.^[180]

These safer sex recommendations are agreed upon by public health officials for men who have sex with men to avoid sexually transmitted infections:

• Avoid contact with a partner’s bodily fluids and with any visible genital lesions.
• Use condoms for anal and oral sex.
• Use a barrier (e.g., latex sheet, dental dam, cut-open condom) during anal–oral sex.
• Cover sex toys that penetrate more than one person with a new condom for each person; consider using different toys for each person and use latex or vinyl gloves and lubricant for any sex that might cause bleeding.^[181][182]

Mental

When it was first described in medical literature, homosexuality was often approached from a view that sought to find an inherent psychopathology as its root cause. Much literature on mental health and homosexual patients centered on their depression, substance abuse, and suicide. Although these issues exist among people who are non-heterosexual, discussion about their causes shifted after homosexuality was removed from the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM) in 1973. Instead, social ostracism, legal discrimination, internalization of negative stereotypes, and limited support structures indicate factors homosexual people face in Western societies that often adversely affect their mental health.^[183] Stigma, prejudice, and discrimination stemming from negative societal attitudes toward homosexuality lead to a higher prevalence of mental health disorders among lesbians, gay men, and bisexuals compared to their heterosexual peers.^[184] Evidence indicates that the liberalization of these attitudes over the past few decades is associated with a decrease in such mental health risks among younger LGBT people.^[185]

Gay and lesbian youth

Gay and lesbian youth bear an increased risk of suicide, substance abuse, school problems, and isolation because of a “hostile and condemning environment, verbal and physical abuse, rejection and isolation from family and peers”.^[186] Further, LGBT youths are more likely to report psychological and physical abuse by parents or caretakers, and more sexual abuse. Suggested reasons for this disparity are that (1) LGBT youths may be specifically targeted on the basis of their perceived sexual orientation or gender non-conforming appearance, and (2) that “risk factors associated with sexual minority status, including discrimination, invisibility, and rejection by family members…may lead to an increase in behaviors that are associated with risk for victimization, such as substance abuse, sex with multiple partners, or running away from home as a teenager.”^[187] A 2008 study showed a correlation between the degree of rejecting behavior by parents of LGB adolescents and negative health problems in the teenagers studied:

Higher rates of family rejection were significantly associated with poorer health outcomes. On the basis of odds ratios, lesbian, gay, and bisexual young adults who reported higher levels of family rejection during adolescence were 8.4 times more likely to report having attempted suicide, 5.9 times more likely to report high levels of depression, 3.4 times more likely to use illegal drugs, and 3.4 times more likely to report having engaged in unprotected sexual intercourse compared with peers from families that reported no or low levels of family rejection.^[188]

Crisis centers in larger cities and information sites on the Internet have arisen to help youth and adults.^[189] The Trevor Helpline, a suicide prevention helpline for gay youth, was established following the 1998 airing on HBO of the Academy Award winning short film Trevor.

Law and politics

Legality

Homosexual acts legal   Same-sex marriage   Marriage recognized but not performed   Other type of partnership (or unregistered cohabitation)   Same-sex unions not recognized

Homosexual acts illegal   Not enforced   Heavy penalty   Up to life in prison   Death penalty

Rings indicate local or case-by-case application.

---

• v
• t
• e

Most nations do not prohibit consensual sex between unrelated persons above the local age of consent. Some jurisdictions further recognize identical rights, protections, and privileges for the family structures of same-sex couples, including marriage. Some nations mandate that all individuals restrict themselves to heterosexual relationships; that is, in some jurisdictions homosexual activity is illegal. Offenders can face the death penalty in some fundamentalist Muslim areas such as Iran and parts of Nigeria. There are, however, often significant differences between official policy and real-world enforcement. See Violence against LGBT people.

Although homosexual acts were decriminalized in some parts of the Western world, such as Poland in 1932, Denmark in 1933, Sweden in 1944, and the United Kingdom in 1967, it was not until the mid-1970s that the gay community first began to achieve limited civil rights in some developed countries. On July 2, 2009, homosexuality was decriminalized in India by a High Court ruling.^[190] A turning point was reached in 1973 when the American Psychiatric Association removed homosexuality from the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, thus negating its previous definition of homosexuality as a clinical mental disorder. In 1977, Quebec became the first state-level jurisdiction in the world to prohibit discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation. During the 1980s and 1990s, most developed countries enacted laws decriminalizing homosexual behavior and prohibiting discrimination against lesbian and gay people in employment, housing, and services. On the other hand, many countries today in the Middle East and Africa, as well as several countries in Asia, the Caribbean and the South Pacific, outlaw homosexuality. In six countries, homosexual behavior is punishable by life imprisonment; in ten others, it carries the death penalty.^[191]

Laws against sexual orientation discrimination

United States

• Employment discrimination refers to discriminatory employment practices such as bias in hiring, promotion, job assignment, termination, and compensation, and various types of harassment. In the United States there is “very little statutory, common law, and case law establishing employment discrimination based upon sexual orientation as a legal wrong.”^[192] Some exceptions and alternative legal strategies are available. President Bill Clinton‘s Executive Order 13087 (1998) prohibits discrimination based on sexual orientation in the competitive service of the federal civilian workforce,^[193] and federal non-civil service employees may have recourse under the Due Process Clause of the U.S. Constitution.^[194] Private sector workers may have a Title VII action under a quid pro quo sexual harassment theory,^[195] a “hostile work environment” theory,^[196] a sexual stereotyping theory,^[197] or others.^[192]
• Housing discrimination refers to discrimination against potential or current tenants by landlords. In the United States, there is no federal law against such discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity, but at least thirteen states and many major cities have enacted laws prohibiting it.^[198]
• Hate crimes (also known as bias crimes) are crimes motivated by bias against an identifiable social group, usually groups defined by race (human classification), religion, sexual orientation, disability, ethnicity, nationality, age, gender, gender identity, or political affiliation. In the United States, 45 states and the District of Columbia have statutes criminalizing various types of bias-motivated violence or intimidation (the exceptions are AZ, GA, IN, SC, and WY). Each of these statutes covers bias on the basis of race, religion, and ethnicity; 32 of them cover sexual orientation, 28 cover gender, and 11 cover transgender/gender-identity.^[199] In October 2009, the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act, which “…gives the Justice Department the power to investigate and prosecute bias-motivated violence where the perpetrator has selected the victim because of the person’s actual or perceived race, color, religion, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or disability”, was signed into law and makes hate crime based on sexual orientation, amongst other offenses, a federal crime in the United States.^[200]

European Union

In the European Union, discrimination of any type based on sexual orientation or gender identity is illegal under the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union.^[201]

Political activism

Barbara Gittings picketing Independence Hall July 4, 1966. Photo taken by Kay Lahusen.

Since the 1960s, many LGBT people in the West, particularly those in major metropolitan areas, have developed a so-called gay culture. To many, gay culture is exemplified by the gay pride movement, with annual parades and displays of rainbow flags. Yet not all LGBT people choose to participate in “queer culture”, and many gay men and women specifically decline to do so. To some it seems to be a frivolous display, perpetuating gay stereotypes. To some others, the gay culture represents heterophobia and is scorned as widening the gulf between gay and non-gay people.

With the outbreak of AIDS in the early 1980s, many LGBT groups and individuals organized campaigns to promote efforts in AIDS education, prevention, research, patient support, and community outreach, as well as to demand government support for these programs.

The bewildering death toll wrought by the AIDS epidemic at first seemed to slow the progress of the gay rights movement, but in time it galvanized some parts of the LGBT community into community service and political action, and challenged the heterosexual community to respond compassionately. Major American motion pictures from this period that dramatized the response of individuals and communities to the AIDS crisis include An Early Frost (1985), Longtime Companion (1990), And the Band Played On (1993), Philadelphia (1993), and Common Threads: Stories from the Quilt (1989).

Publicly gay politicians have attained numerous government posts, even in countries that had sodomy laws in their recent past. Examples include Guido Westerwelle, Germany’s Vice-Chancellor; Peter Mandelson, a British Labour Party cabinet minister and Per-Kristian Foss, formerly Norwegian Minister of Finance.

LGBT movements are opposed by a variety of individuals and organizations. Some social conservatives believe that all sexual relationships with people other than an opposite-sex spouse undermine the traditional family^[202] and that children should be reared in homes with both a father and a mother.^[203][204] There is concern that gay rights may conflict with individuals’ freedom of speech,^{[205][206][207][208][209]} religious freedoms in the workplace,^[210][211] the ability to run churches,^[212] charitable organizations^[213][214] and other religious organizations^[215] in accordance with one’s religious views, and that the acceptance of homosexual relationships by religious organizations might be forced through threatening to remove the tax-exempt status of churches whose views do not align with those of the government.^{[216][217][218][219]}

Critics charge that political correctness has led to the association of sex between males and HIV being downplayed.^[220][221]

Military service

The US Army defines homosexual conduct as “a homosexual act, a statement by a soldier that demonstrates a propensity or intent to engage in homosexual acts, the solicitation of another to engage in homosexual act or acts, or a homosexual marriage or attempted marriage.”^[222]

Policies and attitudes toward gay and lesbian military personnel vary widely around the world. Some countries allow gay men, lesbians, and bisexual people to serve openly and have granted them the same rights and privileges as their heterosexual counterparts. Many countries neither ban nor support LGB service members. A few countries continue to ban homosexual personnel outright.

Most Western military forces have removed policies excluding sexual minority members. Of the 26 countries that participate militarily in NATO, more than 20 permit openly gay, lesbian and bisexual people to serve. Of the permanent members of the United Nations Security Council, three (United Kingdom, France and United States) do so. The other two generally do not: China bans gay and lesbian people outright, Russia excludes all gay and lesbian people during peacetime but allows some gay men to serve in wartime (see below). Israel is the only country in the Middle East region that allows openly LGB people to serve in the military.

While the question of homosexuality in the military has been highly politicized in the United States, it is not necessarily so in many countries. Generally speaking, sexuality in these cultures is considered a more personal aspect of one’s identity than it is in the United States.

According to American Psychological Association empirical evidence fails to show that sexual orientation is germane to any aspect of military effectiveness including unit cohesion, morale, recruitment and retention.^[223] Sexual orientation is irrelevant to task cohesion, the only type of cohesion that critically predicts the team’s military readiness and success.^[224]

On March 18, 2010, after U.S. President Obama announced that he wanted to put an end to the Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell policy, former U.S. general and high ranking NATO official John Sheehan blamed homosexuals serving in the Dutch military for the fall of Srebrenica to Serb militias in the Bosnian War fifteen years earlier, stating that homosexuals had weakened the Dutch UN battalion charged with protecting the enclave. In the U.S. Senate, Sheehan said that European countries had tried to “socialize” their armed forces by letting people serve in the army too easily, which according to him, left them weakened. He claimed that his opinion was shared by the leadership of the Dutch armed forces, mentioning the name “Hankman Berman”, most probably referring to the then chief of the Dutch defence staff, Henk van den Breemen.^[225] Dutch authorities dismissed Sheehan’s statements as “disgraceful” and “total nonsense”.^{[226][227][228][229][230]}

Society and sociology

Public opinion

2007 Pew Global Research Poll: Should homosexuality be accepted in society? Percentage of responders that answered accept:

  81% – 90%

  71% – 80%

  61% – 70%

  51% – 60%

  41% – 50%

  31% – 40%

  21% – 30%

  11% – 20%

  1% – 10%

  No data

Societal acceptance of non-heterosexual orientations such as homosexuality is lowest in Asian and African countries, and is highest in Europe, Australia, and the Americas. Western society has become increasingly accepting of homosexuality over the past few decades.

Relationships

In 2006, the American Psychological Association, American Psychiatric Association and National Association of Social Workers stated in an amicus brief presented to the Supreme Court of the State of California: “Gay men and lesbians form stable, committed relationships that are equivalent to heterosexual relationships in essential respects. The institution of marriage offers social, psychological, and health benefits that are denied to same-sex couples. By denying same-sex couples the right to marry, the state reinforces and perpetuates the stigma historically associated with homosexuality. Homosexuality remains stigmatized, and this stigma has negative consequences. California’s prohibition on marriage for same-sex couples reflects and reinforces this stigma”. They concluded: “There is no scientific basis for distinguishing between same-sex couples and heterosexual couples with respect to the legal rights, obligations, benefits, and burdens conferred by civil marriage.”^[2]

Religion

Though the relationship between homosexuality and religion can vary greatly across time and place, within and between different religions and sects, and regarding different forms of homosexuality and bisexuality, current authoritative bodies and doctrines of the world’s largest religions generally view homosexuality negatively. This can range from quietly discouraging homosexual activity, to explicitly forbidding same-sex sexual practices among adherents and actively opposing social acceptance of homosexuality. Some teach that homosexual orientation itself is sinful,^[231] others state that only the sexual act is a sin,^[232] others are completely accepting of gays and lesbians,^[233] while some encourage homosexuality.^[234] Some claim that homosexuality can be overcome through religious faith and practice. On the other hand, voices exist within many of these religions that view homosexuality more positively, and liberal religious denominations may bless same-sex marriages. Some view same-sex love and sexuality as sacred, and a mythology of same-sex love can be found around the world. Regardless of their position on homosexuality, many people of faith look to both sacred texts and tradition for guidance on this issue.

Discrimination

Gay bullying

Gay bullying can be the verbal or physical abuse against a person who is perceived by the aggressor to be lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender, including persons who are actually heterosexual or of non-specific or unknown sexual orientation. In the US, teenage students heard anti-gay slurs such as “homo”, “faggot” and “sissy” about 26 times a day on average, or once every 14 minutes, according to a 1998 study by Mental Health America (formerly National Mental Health Association).^[235]

Heterosexism and homophobia

Protests in New York City against Uganda‘s Anti-Homosexuality Bill.

In many cultures, homosexual people are frequently subject to prejudice and discrimination. A 2011 Dutch study concluded that 49% of Holland’s youth and 58% of youth foreign to the country reject homosexuality.^[236] Similar to other minority groups they can also be subject to stereotyping. These attitudes tend to be due to forms of homophobia and heterosexism (negative attitudes, bias, and discrimination in favor of opposite-sex sexuality and relationships). Heterosexism can include the presumption that everyone is heterosexual or that opposite-sex attractions and relationships are the norm and therefore superior. Homophobia is a fear of, aversion to, or discrimination against homosexual people. It manifests in different forms, and a number of different types have been postulated, among which are internalized homophobia, social homophobia, emotional homophobia, rationalized homophobia, and others.^[237] Similar is lesbophobia (specifically targeting lesbians) and biphobia (against bisexual people). When such attitudes manifest as crimes they are often called hate crimes and gay bashing.

Negative stereotypes characterize LGB people as less romantically stable, more promiscuous and more likely to abuse children, but there is no scientific basis to such assertions. Gay men and lesbians form stable, committed relationships that are equivalent to heterosexual relationships in essential respects.^[2] Sexual orientation does not affect the likelihood that people will abuse children.^{[238][239][240]} Claims that there is scientific evidence to support an association between being gay and being a pedophile are based on misuses of those terms and misrepresentation of the actual evidence.^[239]

Violence against gays and lesbians

In the United States, the FBI reported that 15.6% of hate crimes reported to police in 2004 were based on perceived sexual orientation. Sixty-one percent of these attacks were against gay men.^[241] The 1998 murder of Matthew Shepard, a gay student, is a notorious such incident in the U.S.

Homosexual behavior in other animals

Roy and Silo, two New York Central Park Zoo male Chinstrap Penguins similar to those pictured, became internationally known when they coupled and later were given an egg that needed hatching and care, which they successfully did.^[242]

Homosexual, bisexual and transgender behaviors occur in a number of other animal species. Such behaviors include sex, courtship, affection, pair bonding, and parenting^[13] and are very widespread: a 1999 review by researcher Bruce Bagemihl shows that homosexual behavior has been observed in close to 1500 species, ranging from primates to gut worms, and is well documented for 500 of them.^[13][14] Animal sexual behaviour takes many different forms, even within the same species. The motivations for and implications of these behaviors have yet to be fully understood, since most species have yet to be fully studied.^[243] According to Bagemihl, “the animal kingdom [does] it with much greater sexual diversity—including homosexual, bisexual and nonreproductive sex—than the scientific community and society at large have previously been willing to accept.”^[244]

See also

• LGBT rights by country or territory
• LGBT rights at the United Nations
• Anti-LGBT rhetoric
• Biology and sexual orientation
• Fraternal birth order and male sexual orientation
• Gender identity disorder
• Hate speech
• List of nonfiction books about homosexuality
• List of gay, lesbian or bisexual people
• Non-westernized concepts of male sexuality
• Religion and sexuality
• Riddle homophobia scale
• Sexuality and gender identity-based cultures

Notes

References

External links

religion.com
(CNN)– Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. was writing an advice column in 1958 for Ebony magazine when he received an unusual letter.

“I am a boy,” an anonymous writer told King. “But I feel about boys the way I ought to feel about girls. I don’t want my parents to know about me. What can I do?”

In calm, pastoral tones, King told the boy that his problem wasn’t uncommon, but required “careful attention.”

“The type of feeling that you have toward boys is probably not an innate tendency, but something that has been culturally acquired,” King wrote. “You are already on the right road toward a solution, since you honestly recognize the problem and have a desire to solve it.”

We know what King thought about race, poverty and war. But what was his attitude toward gay people, and if he was alive today would he see the gay rights movement as another stage of the civil rights movement?

That’s not the type of question most people will consider on this Monday as the nation celebrates King’s national holiday. Yet the debate over King’s stance toward gay rights has long divided his family and followers. That debate is poised to go public again because of the upcoming release of two potentially explosive books, one of which examines King’s close relationship with an openly gay civil rights leader, Bayard Rustin.

The author of both books says King’s stance on gay rights is unclear because the Ebony advice column may be the only public exchange on record where he touches on the morality of homosexuality.

Yet King would have been a champion of gay rights today because of his view of Christianity, says Michael Long, author of, “I Must Resist: Bayard Rustin’s Life in Letters,” who shared the story of King’s Ebony letter.

“Dr. King never publicly welcomed gays at the front gate of his beloved community. But he did leave behind a key for them – his belief that each person is sacred, free and equal to all to others,” says Long, also author of the upcoming “Keeping it straight? Martin Luther King, Jr., Homosexuality, and Gay Rights.”

Did King’s dream include gay people?

One person close to King, though, would disagree.

Rev. Bernice King led a march to her father’s graveside in 2005 while calling for a constitutional ban on gay marriage. She was joined by Bishop Eddie Long, senior pastor of New Birth Missionary Church in Georgia, where she served as an elder at the time. Long, who recently settled out of court with four young men who filed lawsuits claiming he coerced them into sexual relationships, publicly condemned homosexuality.

King did not answer an interview request, but she has spoken publicly about her views.

During a speech at a church meeting in New Zealand, she said her father “did not take a bullet for same-sex marriage.”

Yet her mother, Coretta Scott King, was a vocal supporter of gay rights. One of her closest aides was gay. She also invoked her husband’s dream.

Ravi Perry, a political science professor at Clark University in Worcester, Massachusetts, said King’s widow once said in a public speech that everyone who believed in her husband’s dream should “make room at the table of brother and sisterhood for lesbian and gay people.”

There is no private or public record of King condemning gay people, Perry says. Even the FBI’s surveillance of King’s private phone conversations didn’t turn up any moment where King disparaged gay people, she says.

“If Dr. King were anti-gay, there would likely be a sermon, a speech, a recording of some kind indicating such,” she says. “And knowing how closely his phones were tapped; surely there would be a record of such statements.”

Those who say King did not condemn gays and would have supported gay rights today point to King’s theology.

Though King was a Christian minister, he didn’t embrace a literal reading of the Bible that condemns homosexuality, some historians say. King’s vision of the Beloved Community – his biblical-rooted vision of humanity transcending its racial and religious differences – expanded people’s rights, not restricted them, they say.

Rev. C.T. Vivian, who worked with King at the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, says King would have championed gay rights today.

“Martin was a theologian,” Vivian says. “Martin starts with the fact that God loves everybody, and all men and all women were created by God. He based his whole philosophy on God’s love for all people.”

King’s relationship with ‘Brother Bayard’

Those who say King would have championed gay rights also point to King’s treatment of one of the movement’s most important leaders, Bayard Rustin.

Rustin was an openly gay civil rights leader who is widely credited with organizing the 1963 March on Washington. He was an organizational genius, the man who insisted that King speak last on the program, giving his “I Have a Dream” speech the resonance it would not have had otherwise, says Jerald Podair, author of “Bayard Rustin: American Dreamer.”

“He was the kind of guy who could tell you how many portable toilets you needed for 250,000 people in a demonstration,” Podair says. “He was a details guy. King needed him for that march.”

But Rustin could do more than arrange a demonstration. He was also a formidable thinker and debater. He was born to a 15-year-old single mother and never graduated from college.

The movement was led by intellectual heavyweights like King, but even among them, Rustin stood out, Podair says. He read everything and was a visionary. One aide to President Lyndon Johnson described him as one of the five smartest men in America, says Podair, a history professor at Lawrence University in Appleton, Wisconsin.

“People who heard him speak were transfixed,” Podair says.

Rustin became one of the movement’s most eloquent defenders of its nonviolent philosophy, says Saladin Ambar, a political scientist at Lehigh University in Pennsylvania.

“He was one of the few individuals not afraid to debate with Malcolm X in public,” Ambar says. “Rustin more than held his own and really challenged Malcolm to push his thinking.”

Rustin was a special assistant to King and once headed the Southern Christian Leadership Conference. During the planning of the March on Washington, King resisted calls to jettison Rustin because he was gay, Podair says.

King, though, didn’t speak out on behalf of gay rights because he was doing all he could to hold the movement together, historians say.

He had to constantly fend off rumors that the movement was infiltrated by communists. He was also criticized for expanding the movement to take on poverty and oppose the Vietnam War.

“The movement superseded any discussion of gay rights,” Ambar says. “King was dedicated to the cause at hand.”

With all that was going on, King couldn’t afford to wage a public campaign defending Rustin’s homosexuality, says Vivian, a SCLC colleague of King’s.

“Any employee that would employ a gay person at the time who was outwardly gay would have problems,” Vivian says. “I don’t care if you were the president of the Untied Sates, you would have trouble doing that.”

After the 1963 March on Washington, Rustin remained as King’s adviser. The two, however, drifted apart when King became more radical during the last three years of his life, says Adair, Rustin’s biographer.

When Rustin died in 1987, he was starting to receive attention from gay and lesbian activists who linked civil rights with gay rights, Podair says.

Rustin was a late convert to their cause.

“He never put it [homosexuality] front and center,” Podair says. “He never politicized it until the end of his life. He didn’t want to make a big deal out of it.”

It’s no longer unusual today for gay and lesbian activists to draw parallels between their struggles and King’s legacy. Vivian, King’s SCLC colleague, says the comparison is apt.

“There was a time when black people were afraid to be themselves among white people,” he says. “You had to fit a stereotype in order to be accepted. They’re going through the same thing but now they feel better about themselves.”

Vivian says the movement shouldn’t be limited to race.

“As we were freeing up black people, we’re freeing up the whole society.”

Long, author of the upcoming books on King and Rustin, says King’s vision transcended his personal limitations. Maybe he could have said more to that anonymous boy who wrote him at Ebony. But he did leave him a key to the Beloved Community– even if he didn’t realize it at the time, Long says.

Now, Long says, it’s up to those who claim King today to use that key.

“A turn of that key and a gentle push on the gate, swinging it wide open so everyone can enter into the Beloved Community,” he says. “That’s the best way to advance the legacy of Martin Luther King.”

Hindustantimes
Balbir Krishan, an artist holding an exhibition on the theme of homosexuality, is watchful as people pour into the Triveni Art Gallery to see his paintings. After he was assaulted by an unidentified youth at the Lalit Kala Akademi on Thursday, Krishan — a double amputee — is a pack of
nerves. He has sought police protection till January 11, when his exhibition ends.

“I had packed my paintings yesterday and was ready to leave, but I got support from artists here and they convinced me to stay back,” he said. Police had not filed an FIR against the assailant till Thursday night. An FIR was finally lodged on Friday morning.

Unicornbooty

We don’t necessarily run in cryptography circles here at UB, but even we have to admit that “internationally acclaimed cryptographer” Michael Wood’s publishing on the Apostle Paul’s teachings on homosexuality piqued our attention.

Apparently Paul’s paradoxes laid out in the book of Romans in the Bible have plagued theologians and historians for thousands of years. A classic argument against cultural permissiveness toward homosexuality stems from Romans, in which Paul appears to say homosexuals need not apply for an all-inclusive pass to Heaven – because they will be denied.

But Wood’s discovery has turned the entire scripture upside down, and it appears that the Bible has had a welcome mat out for the gays all along.

Wordy, we know. But how about them apples? Real talk, we’re full grown, non-robotic, autonomous adults capable of making our own decisions regarding morality here at UB, thankyouverymuch – but it’s always nice to hear that those who promote the idea of an all-loving God that hates some of the things He created have been reading their Bibles the wrong way all this time.

What say you about this biblical development?

Interfax

A bill imposing an administrative penalty for propaganda promoting homosexuality and pedophilia among minors has been evaluated by the Russian Constitutional Court, said St. Petersburg Legislative Assembly member Vitaly Milonov, who authored the bill.

“This bill underwent a verification procedure at the Constitutional Court, which gave a clear definition to the term ‘homosexual propaganda,” Milonov told a press conference in St. Petersburg.

The bill does not discriminate in any way against homosexuals, Milonov said.

For his part, St. Petersburg Speaker Vadim Tyulpanov said he was surprised by the negative U.S. reaction to the bill.

“The U.S. Department of State has nothing else to do but mind our bill,” he told a press conference that focused on the results of the fourth term of the legislature.

Thanks to the debate surrounding this document, the St. Petersburg parliament has become famous across the world, he said.

“While the bill was debated, I started receiving e-mails from city residents supporting the bill. Over 90% of St. Petersburg citizens support the bill,” Tyulpanov said.

On November 16, the St. Petersburg Legislative Assembly approved on first reading a bill imposing administrative liability for homosexual and pedophile propaganda among minors. In presenting the bill, author Vitaly Milonov said the bill must be passed to protect children from destructive information.

Under the bill, homosexual propaganda will entail a fine of 1,000-3,000 rubles for individuals, 3,000-5,000 rubles for officials and 10,000-50,000 rubles for companies.

President of the Federation Council Valentina Matviyenko voiced support for the bill.

For her part, U.S. State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said that Washington is concerned by the proposal to pass this bill as it seriously restricts the freedom of self-expression and the freedom of assembly for sexual minorities. The U.S. administration believes that the rights of homosexuals are an integral part of human rights.

The Russian Foreign Ministry said that Nuland’s statement is inappropriate and represents an act of interference in Russia’s legislative process. “We are perplexed by the American side’s attempts to interfere in the legislative process in Russia, especially publicly. We view the attempt as inappropriate and inconsistent with the practice of interstate relations,” Dolgov said, answering a question from Interfax.

Freemalaysiatoday

PETALING JAYA: A senior lawyer has disputed a government decree that homosexuality is unconstitutional and instead said that the federal constitution in fact leaves the matter open to debate.

Yesterday Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department, Jamil Khir Baharom, declared homosexuality as unconstitutional and cited sections 377 (a), (b), (c) and (d) of the Penal Code which refer to carnal intercourse against the order of nature.

Jamil’s statement was subsequently backed by fellow Cabinet Minister, Nazri Aziz, who referred to Article 3 of the Federal Constitution which states that Islam is the religion of the federation.

Nazri explained that if certain acts fall within the constitution but go against Islam they are deemed inapplicable in Malaysia.

But Alex De Silva from the law firm Bodipalar Ponnudurai De Silva (BPD), told FMT that there is no provision within the federal constitution that specifically states that homosexuality is an offence or that it should be banned.

“Article 3 states that Islam is the religion of the federation but other religions may be practised in peace and harmony in any part of the federation,” he recited.

“It enshrines the special position of Islam in Malaysia. It’s not meant to be interpreted as such that any practice that goes against it is unconstitutional.”

De Silva pointed out that if that was the case then the consumption of pork and alcohol would also be unconstitutional since both go against Islam.

“As for the Penal Code, section 377 makes it an offence for two persons to engage in carnal intercourse,” he said. “The two persons could be of the same sex or even of the opposite sex. It does not specify homosexuals.”

“In any event, being guilty of an offence under the Penal Code does not make the offender “unconstitutional”. It merely means that the offenders may be guilty of an offence and is liable to be charged and if found guilty to be sentenced.”

De Silva added that Article 8 of the constitution that pertains to equality must also be taken into consideration.

Article 8 (2) states that there shall be no discrimination against citizens on the ground only of religion, race, descent, place of birth or gender.

“Yes it doesn’t mention sexual preference,” De Silva acknowledged. “At the time when the constitution was drafted probably this was not an issue.”

“But the issue at hand is arguable. Homosexuals may perhaps rely on Article 8 to argue that the equality guaranteed would extend to not to discriminate against them as a class premised on the ground that all are citizens are equal.”

Gay rights made headlines earlier this month after police banned the annual Seksualiti Merdeka festival which has championed the freedom of sexual orientation and gender identity since 2008.

Lezgetreal

The Vatican is throwing a fit over the inclusion of sexual orientation and gender identity as part of human rights saying that it is part of an agenda that could restrict the Church’s freedom. Achbishop Silvano Tomasi, who heads the Vatican’s Permanent Mission to the UN iin Geneva, told CNA “The resolution marks a change. It is seen as the beginning of a movement within the international community and the United Nations to insert gay rights in the global human rights agenda.”

Of course, any complaint by the Vatican is nothing to be concerned about with regards to the workings of the United Nations since the Vatican is one of the nations that is not a member of the UN. The only thing that the Vatican do is complain about the push to include LGBT rights within the umbrella of human rights. They recently passed a resolution that stressed sexual orientation and gender identity rights as human rights.

Archbishop Tomasi called the resolution as “a beginning of an international norm that will take hold gradually,” and “if norms are established, what provisions will be made for freedom of expression on the part of religious leaders?”

According to DFWCatholic:

He spoke of a “genuine concern” that natural marriages and families “will be socially downgraded with the eventual legislation that puts homosexual “marriage” and the marriage between a man and a woman” on the same level. The Vatican representative also said marriage could be threatened by related measures that would mandate homosexual adoptions and introduce “compulsory sex education at school that clashes with Christian values.”

The Vatican is steadily losing ground to a far more inclusive view of the world. Many people are abandoning religion because it constantly tries to impose a view of the world which is now inconsistent with the knowledge garnered by humans over the last five centuries. In fact, many of the Vatican’s views are inconsistent with reality and were imposed and justified by those who benefitted by gaining power over other people.

Indeed, once people become educated, which is another basic human right, they begin to question religious teachings, and often drift away from them.

The resolution, which was hailed by Secretary of State Hilary Rodham Clinton condemns acts of violence and discrimination against lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transsexuals. Archbishop Tomasi had to reiterate that the Vatican does not support violence against those who “engage in homosexual behavior”, nor do they support any ‘attempt by the state to punish an individual simply because of “feelings and thoughts”, he continues to maintain that LGBT people do not deserve equality, thus setting up the ability for groups and individuals to justify violence against LGBT people.

He went on to say, according to the news article:

“I think that violence against homosexual persons is not acceptable and it should be rejected, even though this does not imply an endorsement of their behavior.”

“The terms ‘sexual orientation and gender identity’ are not defined in international law,” he noted. “To the extent that they are not external behavior, but feelings and thoughts, they cannot be subjected to punitive laws.”

But “for some people,” he pointed out, “these words are a code phrase for types of conduct.”

Never mind the fact that there are genetic and physical components to that “behavior”, and it is not a choice which is something that one cannot say about religion. Tomasi also compared homosexuality to incest, pedophilia and rape by noting that all societies regulate some sexual practices like those for the common good. What he forgot is that incest has the strong potential of producing unhealthy offspring and often damages the gene pool, especially in small numbers of individuals, pedophilia and rape both involve non-consensual sex as a child is not able to adequately agree to the sexual act and in rape it is flat out forced. True homosexual sex is between two consenting adults of the same-sex.

DFWCatholic.org went on to say:

“There is confusion in some people’s mind,” he noted, “in combining a just respect and protection for every person – including homosexuals – and support for the indispensable role of the family, the parents right to educate their children, the support of the natural family for the common good.”

While the secular West may find this ethos increasingly incomprehensible, the Church will continues to promote it. “The teaching of the Church is not conditioned by political consensus,” the archbishop noted. “At times she is misunderstood and even becomes the target of reprisals and persecution.”

“Reason and natural law, however, support faith-inspired positions,” he stated, “and the convergence of faith and reason is exceptionally fruitful for the progress and well-being of the human family.”

It is always been amazing how religious groups try to coopt and take over the notions of ‘reason’ and ‘natural law’ when, in reality, there is nothing more antithetical to reason that believing in some bearded man in the sky dictating how the world will work, and as for ‘natural law’, nature is rife with animals who exhibit behaviors consistent with same-sex attraction and even transsexual identities.

What this comes down to is the erosion of patriarchal belief systems that the Vatican is desperate to hold on to and keep perpetuating. In reality, the Vatican is whining because they are losing out on their power, which is all they are worried about. This is why they have behaved as if the priest child sexual abuse scandal was just going to go away if ignored. It threatened their power, and they just wanted it to disappear.

The news

LAHORE: Fully recognised as a reality by 113 countries of the world that have legalised and decriminalised homosexuality over the years, the concept of same-sex union is still illegal in 76 nations and punishable by death in five countries – Iran, Saudi Arabia, Mauritania, Yemen and Sudan.

The Muslim countries where homosexuality is legal include Mali, Jordan, Indonesia, Kazakhstan, Turkey, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Azerbaijan etc.

As a large number of Pakistanis, including the religious clerics and parliamentarians, are infuriated over the June 26, 2011 gay, lesbians and transgender pride celebration ceremony that was hosted by the US Embassy in Islamabad, less than a month after President Obama had proclaimed equal rights for all, regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity in his May 31, 2011 speech, chances are bright that criticism against America may gain momentum in coming days provided the Pakistani media highlights the issue.

A curious peek into the concept of homosexuality and facts consequently collected from numerous United Nations documents and the most recent survey report of the International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Inter-sex Association (ILGA) reveal that people are also put to death for their sexual orientation in Southern Somalia and about 12 Nigerian states. It formerly carried the death penalty in Afghanistan under the Taliban rule and in Iraq under a 2001 decree by Saddam Hussein.

With reference to Sudan, anybody found guilty of committing sodomy for the third time in this country is stoned to death or gets life imprisonment, but the punishment for the first and second time same-sex activity is a jail term of up to five years, accompanied by 100 lashes.

Iran is perhaps the only nation to execute the largest number of its citizens for homosexuality. Since the Islamic revolution, the Iranian government has executed more than 4,000 people charged with homosexual acts.

The International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Inter-sex Association, which was founded in 1978 with a mission to achieve equal rights for lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans and inter-sex people in every corner of the globe, has 700 member organizations in 110 countries today.

The hectic efforts of ILGA bore fruit when on December 18, 2008 the United Nations General Assembly finally recognized the rights of gay and lesbian people, through support from 66 countries.

It goes without saying that since the end of 19th century, voices have been raised throughout the West for recognition of the queer people and various movements have since been advocating equal rights for the homosexuals, including their rights to marriages, adoption of children, employment and equal access to healthcare etc.

With the signatures of the United States in 2009, the aforementioned UN declaration had enjoyed the support of 67 countries till two years ago and the document was signed by every European and Western nation.

An opposing statement, however, was put forward by 57 Muslim nations. This year, no less than 85 countries at the UN Human Rights Council have condemned the persecution on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity.

The most common terms for homosexual people are lesbian for women and gay for men, though gay is also used to refer generally to both homosexual men and women.

According to the ILGA, homosexuality is legal in the following 113 countries:

Germany (1968), Greece (1951), Canada (1969), United States (2003), Australia, Hungary (1962), Iceland (1940), Ireland (1993), Italy (1890), Kosovo (1994), Latvia (1992), Liechtenstein (1989), Lithuania (1993), Luxembourg (1795), Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde (2004), Central African Republic, Chad, Congo-Brazzaville, Ivory Coast, Congo, Equatorial Guinea (1931), Gabon, Guinea-Bissau (1993), Madagascar, Mali, Niger, Rwanda, South Africa (1998), Cambodia, China (1997), East Timor (1975), India (2009), Indonesia, Israel (1988), Japan (1882), Jordan (1951), Kazakhstan (1998), Kyrgyzstan (1998), Laos, Mongolia (1987), Nepal (2007), North Korea, Philippines, South Korea, Taiwan (1896), Tajikistan (1998), Thailand (1957), Turkey (1858), Vietnam, West Bank in the Palestinian Authority, Albania (1995), Andorra, Armenia (2003), Austria (1971), Azerbaijan (2000), Belgium (1795), Bosnia and Herzegovina (1998), Bulgaria (1968), Croatia (1977), Cyprus (1998), Czech Republic (1962), Denmark (1933), Estonia (1992), Finland (1971), France (1791), Georgia (2000), Macedonia (1996), Malta (1973), Moldova (1995), Monaco (1793), Montenegro (1977), the Netherlands (1811), Norway (1972), Poland (1932), Portugal (1983), Romania (1996), Russia (1993), San Marino (1865), Serbia (1994), Slovakia (1962), Slovenia (1977), Spain (1979), Sweden (1944), Switzerland (1942), Ukraine (1991), United Kingdom, Vatican City (1929), Argentina (1887), Bahamas (1991), Bolivia, Brazil (1831), Costa Rica (1971), Chile (1999), Colombia (1981), Cuba (1979), Dominican Republic, Ecuador (1997), El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti, Honduras (1899), Mexico (1872), Nicaragua (2008), Panama (2008), Paraguay (1880), Peru (1836), Suriname (1869), Uruguay (1934), Venezuela as well as the Dutch associates Aruba and the Netherlands Antilles, Fiji (2010), Marshall Islands (2005), Micronesia, New Zealand (1986), Vanuatu, the New Zealand associates of Niue (2007), and Tokelau (2007).

While countries such as South Africa, Iceland, Belgium, Holland, Norway, Spain, Sweden, Portugal, Argentina and Canada etc also allow same-sex couples to tie a marital knots, the likes of South Africa, Israel, Andorra, Norway, Spain, Sweden, UK, Belgium, Denmark, Holland, Canada, Brazil, Argentina, US, Mexico, Australia and Iceland etc also let same-sex couples to adopt children.

Homosexuality is illegal in the following 76 countries: Algeria, Angola, Botswana, Burundi, Cameroon, Comoros, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Kenya, Lesotho, Liberia, Libya, Malawi, Mauritania (death penalty), Mauritius, Morocco, Mozambique, Namibia, Nigeria (death penalty in some states), Sao Tome and Principe, Senegal, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Sudan (death penalty), Swaziland, Tanzania, Togo, Tunisia, Uganda, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Brunei, Burma, Iran (death penalty), Kuwait, Lebanon, Malaysia, Maldives, Oman, Pakistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia (death penalty), Singapore, Sri Lanka, Syria, Turkmenistan, United Arab Emirates, Uzbekistan, Yemen (death penalty), Gaza Strip in the Palestinian Authority, Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, Antigua and Barbuda, Barbados, Belize, Dominican Republic, Grenada, Guyana, Jamaica, St Kitts & Nevis, St Lucia, St Vincent, Trinidad and Tobago, Kiribati, Nauru, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu and the New Zealand associate of Cook Islands.

Extensive research conducted by The News International also shows that in India, the Delhi High Court had declared Homosexuality legal on July 2, 2009, while the United States had formally permitted same sex activities among consenting adults in 2003.