- Being gay is not an easy concept for many people to understand. Homosexuality is based on the concept of being attracted to someone of the same gender, but it is much more than that. Being gay includes an entire lifestyle, including festivals, gatherings and parties celebrating homosexuality. Homosexual men are typically referred to as gay while women are called lesbians. Homosexuals includes a variety of stereotypes just as the straight lifestyle does, and each of these stereotypes works in harmony to create a full, rich lifestyle.
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There are many misconceptions in the gay lifestyle. One of the biggest misconceptions is the idea that gay people carry diseases such as AIDS. Simply being gay does not make someone ill, just as being smart does not automatically make someone successful.
The gay male population does have a higher incidence of sexually transmitted diseases due to poor choices, not because they are gay.
Another homosexual misconception is having an interest in the same gender makes you gay. Many people are bisexual, meaning they are sexually attracted to both genders. Being interested in same-sex relations is just a variation in the wide spectrum of sexual choices.
There is an argument in society as to whether being gay is a nature vs. nurture choice. People who believe in the nature theory think that people are born gay and nothing in the outside environment has an influence on the way they choose to live. Those who believe in the nurture concept of homosexuality think that people can choose to be (and also, choose to not be) gay. However, there is no concrete scientific evidence that being gay is either an inherent genetic disposition or a learned lifestyle. -
The history of being gay is as old as humanity itself. There have been prominent gay figures as far back as 600 BC, when the famous poet Sappho lived. Roman society often had gay men dress as women to satisfy warriors and entertain the troops while they were away from home.
Asian history also has a large homosexual subculture, with many famous male gay relationships. Being gay has changed very little from its roots in history, with the exception that gay life has earned a stigma of negativity in recent years. Many people see homosexuality as wrong and against nature, although homosexuality has been in existence for centuries. -
Homosexuality has many different effects in society. Homosexual people have to learn how to adapt to the harsh treatment and stigma that society has placed on them. Many gay people are not open with their homosexuality because they are often treated poorly for their choices.
Those who are not gay have to learn how to tolerate the homosexuality of those around them. Some people are very open and accepting of gay people.
Other people are not so open, discouraging and threatening those who are openly gay. Homosexuality can cause a wide range of emotions from elation and joy to anger and hate and each person must learn to deal with those feelings appropriately.
Being gay in society today is not only stigmatized, but can be very dangerous. Many people treat homosexuals with disdain and hate, harming and even killing people for being openly gay.
One of the most famous homosexual hate crimes is the case of Matthew Shepard. Matthew Shepard was a 21-year-old college student murdered by two men because they hated gay people. He was tied to a fence, savagely beaten and left to die simply because he was homosexual. While this is one of the most famous anti-gay hate crimes, it is not the only one. Other gay people have been mistreated, abused and killed because of their lifestyle choices. -
Homosexuality is a part of life that everyone must learn to deal with. It is important because there will always be gay people in the world, regardless of what other people think. Society must learn to be open and accepting of gay people, as there will always be gay people in the world.
Gay marriage is another important part of a homosexual lifestyle. Many openly homosexual people are interested in marriage and in sharing their life with the one they love, just as heterosexual people do.
A large number of people disagree with the concept of gay marriage, stating that marriage is a sacred union between a man and a woman. A few states have legalized gay marriage in recent years, while other states have tried to enact legislation banning gay marriage. Gay marriage will continue to be a hotly-debated topic as long as the concept of homosexuality remains a controversial social issue.
Homosexuality is not like a light switch a person can turn on and off. Being gay is a part of who someone truly is. Living a gay lifestyle is a complex choice that affects every part of a homosexual's life.
Comments
kuros said
on 1/3/2009 Please read my comment from bottom up - I had to split the text into several pieces which appear now in reversed order. Cheers
kuros said
on 1/3/2009 Maybe there is also the fear to confront oneself that the choice of being gay could have something to do with that fear. Maybe (and surely you think that) all that is bullshit what I write. But it seems obvious that a man who is afraid of oneself is even more inclined to be close to someone who he supposes to not be so. And so again there is a kind of paradox (I wouldn't call it mysterical): emotional (and then sexual) attraction to a man (for most of the gays in the very first years of adolescence) which corresponds with ideas about two men loving and fulfilling each other. Emotional attraction to the coolness of a reasonable man (judged by his body shape or by his thoughtfulness). It feels like a muddle - the problem is that it does not stop to feel like that from then on. Maturation process is somehow interrupted.
kuros said
on 1/3/2009 Could it be that homosexuals are not openly gay because they cannot forget to constantly focus on it and make an issue out of it? They fear the repression from others as you say. But they also fear repression from within themselves - maybe even more that way. They are afraid of behaving fearful and overly soppy in confrontational situations with others. A double fear: a fear of oneself and a fear of others who could confront you with that fear or even exploit you in that situation.
kuros said
on 1/3/2009 You say: "Many gay people are not open with their homosexuality because they are often treated poorly for their choices." Everyone is treated poorly once in a while for what he or she choses. But not everyone mourns about it. You write in the last paragraph that being gay is not like switching on or off a light but something one "truely" is. I don t understand what you want to say. Some paragraphs earlier you argued that gays are bullied for the choice they made. Is it a choice or is it not? How can anyone "truely" be or chose to be gay or straight? It would mean to be just like an ideal gay or straight. But such an ideal is hard to imagine and would be very limitative! The ideal of human being instead is much more promising, open and close to reality because it responds unconditionally to everyone of us in its whole being, the whole character - that what makes you an individual.
kuros said
on 1/3/2009 and let go the sweet illusions. So confrontation is not that bad. Personal assaults are. No one should be attacked and threatened. The problem which I have with your words is that they do not allow confrontation. For instance: A confrontation that your lifestyle is oversexed. A confrontation if you feel like an untouchable gay god or just like a selfish man. A confrontation that sexual behaviour itself is no reason for pride. A confrontation if you are addicted to sex. A confrontation for superficial or neurotic behaviour. A confrontation if you behave like a women. A confrontation if you have a weak personality. Everyone must be able to somehow cope with confrontation not by fleeing it and building a wall around it but by taking it and make something out of it.