Below we have listed some helpful tips that can assist you in writing a good conclusion:. Later in […]. Alice Essays on gay rights, a Cameroonian lawyer, is best known for her work towards decriminalization of homosexuality in Cameroon and founding the nonprofit Association for the Defence of Homosexuals ADEFHO in This is because Sharia Law is widely practiced across Western Asia, essays on gay rights. It even makes some representatives of the natural sciences talk about the different nature of male and female homosexuality. This may be, for example, a ban on army service, work as a teacher at school or as a doctor.
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People essays on gay rights tend to forget how LGBT people are affected by these injustices. If they essays on gay rights know, they would know that these injustices often take a huge emotional toll on LGBT people in many ways. We as a society must demand that they receive equal treatment in order to end this oppression of the LGBT community. Homosexuality has not always been as black as white as it is today, essays on gay rights. These people practiced free and overt sexual relationships and believed that man and woman could exist in one being and their beliefs were accepted among their tribes.
How it works. According to The Constitution, discrimination against LGBT people is illegal, but this discrimination still occurs. This section of the Constitution corresponds essays on gay rights the idea that discrimination is against the law. Allowing gay marriage ensures the people of the United States that every citizen has equal rights. It also ensures those who are coming to America that they will have the same rights as every citizen who is already here no matter their race, origin, values, beliefs, and religion.
As ofgay marriage is recognized in twenty-six countries, including the United States, and civil unions are recognized in many Western nations. While gay marriage has seen the most success in Western nations, anti-discrimination legislation is making progress worldwide. As ofseventy-two countries worldwide have protections against employment discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity, essays on gay rights, including some that also retain sodomy laws. The first country to legalize gay marriage was the Netherlands inthis groundbreaking legislation is arguably one of the most influential events in the timeline of the gay rights movement.
Belgium became the second country to legalize gay marriage after King Albert II signed a bill legalizing same sex marriage into law in Other European countries began essays on gay rights follow this influence with Spain legalizing gay marriage inNorway inand Sweden in Since then, sixteen other European countries have legalized gay marriage. As of JanuaryAustria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Iceland, Ireland, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Sweden and the United Kingdom are the sixteen European countries that recognize gay marriage as legal.
In Latin America, however, the gay rights movement was experiencing slower growth in terms of recognition. In the past decade, countries such as Argentina, Uruguay, and Brazil have made great strides in the quality of life for LGBT individuals. Unfortunately, LGBT people still face discrimination in latin countries, despite recent strides of progress. Machismo, the overwhelming sense of masculinity or pride, is very prevalent in latin countries. Unfortunately, as more LGBT issues come into light, opponents of gay rights will continue to fight back. In accordance with this, Latin America has seen an increase of anti-LGBT hate crimes in recent years. Nearly people died across Latin America from anti-LGBT violence between January and Marchaccording to a report essays on gay rights the IACHR.
In Africa, the fight for marriage equality and discrimination protections has been difficult. Many nations in Africa, such as Somalia, actively practice the death penalty for those accused of homosexual activity — consensual or not. However, South Africa in particular has stood out as a haven for LGBT individuals in Africa, as marriage and joint adoption are both guaranteed by South African law. Fortunately, progress is being made in terms of representation of LGBT people in African countries, essays on gay rights.
In the Middle East, those identifying as LGBT typically face life or death situation in regards to their identity. This is because Sharia Law is widely practiced across Western Asia. In Saudi Arabia, for example, exhibitions of homsexual and essays on gay rights behavior are punishable by fines, flogging, and even death. However, some nations are noticeably more progressive in terms of LGBT rights. Turkey is another country that consistently neglects the needs of its LGBT community. Istanbul also has a large amount of hate crimes against LGBT individuals. Ina transgender woman named Warda was brutally murdered and mutilated by a man who had purchased her for sex.
This murder went highly unnoticed by the public and the police force in Istanbul. Unfortunately, this is not a rare occurrence in Turkey. Crimes against LGBT individuals often go unnoticed and when they are noticed, they are often never solved. In Asia, LGBT laws vary widely by country. Some nations, such as Taiwan, essays on gay rights, are on track to be the first in Asia to legalize same sex marriage. However, in Brunei, legislation recently passed has deemed homsexuality punishable by stoning for men, and caning or imprisonment for women. In North America, LGBT laws have been much more progressive than other continents outside of Europe. While bullying in schools is still commonplace in the United States and Canada, discrimination protections on the basis of sexuality and gender identity are widespread.
Additionally, gay marriage has been legal in Canada sinceand legal in the United States nationwide since The Supreme Court decision ruling that homosexual couples were, by law, allowed to marry sparked great debate when it was first passed. This ruling came less than two decades after President Bill Clinton signed the Defense of Marriage Act DOMAwhich defined marriage as a union between only a man and a woman, thereby denying same-sex couples federal marriage benefits, such as access to health care, social security, and tax benefits, as well as green cards essays on gay rights immigrant spouses of U. Advocates for same-sex love rejoiced at this legislation, exclaiming that equality essays on gay rights finally attainable.
On the other side side, opponents of gay marriage mourned the direction the nation was facing, firing back on social media with firm viewpoints. Due to its highly controversial standing, essays on gay rights, the debate on gay marriage often brings forth the question: how does one determine right from wrong? LGBT youth often face adversity in their school, social and family lives due to differing opinions on whether or not their lifestyle is acceptable. On 18 April Nigel Shelby, a year-old high school freshman in Alabama committed suicide due to homophobic bullying, essays on gay rights.
Nigel took his life because he was ostracized for having the courage to be himself, unfortunately his authenticity went unappreciated by his classmates. While tragic, essays on gay rights, LGBT suicides are not uncommon. A study by JAMA Pediatrics concluded that sexual minority youth were 3. Transgender adolescents were 5. Family problems and bullying most often contributed to suicides among LGBT youth in the study. Although gay marriage is now recognized in the United States, the way LGBT people are treated in the United States has not exactly correlated with that triumphant action.
Recently, there has been speculation about President Trump and his anti-LGBT policies. On 24 January President Trump placed a ban on transgender people serving in the United States Military. This action sparked controversy and conversation over whether the president was homophobic. The President has not directly said that he was homophobic, but his actions definitely correlate with homophobic beliefs. LGBT organizations around the world have been responsible for several changes in the lives of lesbian, gay, bisexual, essays on gay rights transgender people, essays on gay rights.
With many newly being formed in nations where it was never thought possible, there is hope around the world for LGBT individuals. The ACLU is just one organization that has worked towards earning equal rights for LGBT citizens. They carry out their work through five central priority areas: Basic Rights and Liberties, essays on gay rights, Parenting, Relationships and Marriages, Youth and Schools, and Transgender Discrimination. The ACLU works hard to make sure that LGBT people have equal opportunities to participate fully in civil society. GLAAD works through entertainment, news, and digital media to share stories from the LGBTQ community that encorage acceptance.
GLAAD delivers this message mainly through social media with inspiring posts essays on gay rights celebrity endorsements, always making sure to let LGBT people know that they are worthy, essays on gay rights. GLAAD has also been pivotal to the increased portrayal of LGBT persons in the media in a fair, respectful manner that highlights the diversity of the LGBT community. An emerging topic of conversation regarding LGBT activism is representation in the media. LGBT activists are calling for more portrayal of LGBT characters, struggles and relationships in all forms of media whether it be in film, television, or even music.
This movement addresses the importance of young children seeing LGBT characters portrayed as role models in the media. Not only did this movement focus on visibility of LGBT characters, but how they were portrayed. These essays on gay rights, although they did include members of the LGBT community, depicted them as outsiders to society. While the media industry has made huge strides towards equal LGBT representation, some people essays on gay rights not agree with this movement. In some cases, homophobic parents refuse to let their children watch media that highlights LGBT representation, this consequently discourages media producers from including LGBT people in the media for fear of losing regular viewers. Thanks to organizations like GLAAD, LGBT people, especially LGBT youth, are seeing themselves being represented in the media.
At the forefront of many of these organization are fearless leaders who stood up for what they believed in. Cleve Jones, an American AIDS and LGBT rights activist, author and lecturer is one example of an LGBT activist that has fought to change the way our society treats members of the LGBT community. Marsha P. Johnson, an African-American transgender woman and revolutionary LGBT rights activist, is credited for being an instigator in the Stonewall riots. Alice Nkom, a Cameroonian lawyer, is best known for her work towards decriminalization of homosexuality in Cameroon and founding the nonprofit Association for the Defence of Homosexuals ADEFHO in Most notably is the call to find a solution to climate change, which has been widely debated and protested by young and old alike.
Like LGBT activists, essays on gay rights, climate change activists often face adversity for their views on the environment. However in order to truly make a change, activists of all kinds must continue to fight no matter what hardships they face. She is known for having initiated the school strike for climate movement that formed in November This protest was considered highly controversial by many. Environmental activists praised Greta for her courage and for her willingness and dedication to activism at such a young age. Despite opposition from people all over essays on gay rights world, including politicians, Greta continued on with her fight for environmental justice and inspired many others to make a change.
Like Greta, LGBT activists face constant opposition but they carry on with their activism in hopes to improve the lives of others. As many LGBT individuals in the world fall under the protection of comprehensive legislation that allows them to be themselves, there comes an even greater need for those with a voice to help the voiceless. In AprilBrunei put into effect an anti-LGBT law stating that essays on gay rights sex and adultery would be punishable with death by stoning. This sparked a huge outcry from western nations. This response included outcry from highly influential public figures on social media and a boycott of several Brunei-owned corporations. In the age of smartphones and social media, essays on gay rights, activism has become more accessible than it ever was before.
Social media allows people from all over the world to rally together and share ideas. The internet now serves as a huge platform to spark change. It is our responsibility as youth to take advantage of this platform.
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Jefferson states: Need a custom essay on the same topic? Order now Our writers can help you […]. Because of the sheer diversity and variability among the large number of people inhabiting them, cities have always been havens for difference, reflecting the existence of spaces characterised by a commonality among the members inhabiting them. This is precisely how gay villages, or gay neighbourhoods, which are geographical areas with recognized boundaries frequented by a […]. The gay community has faced many accounts of discrimination and hardship to express their sexuality due to societies judgements. In history gay members of communities there were many slang terms that referenced to the meaning of a gay individual. Hugo Lopez SOCI April 7, M.
Laurel-Wilson Inequality and Discrimination LGBTQ Individuals Face Ever since early ages, LGBTQ individuals have been coping with discrimination. The severity of the issue varies from lynching to even avoiding sitting right next to them. These issues can also vary from public spaces train station, school, bus , to […]. A hate crime occurs when the perpetrator of the crime purposefully selects the victim because of who the victim is. Any act of violence against someone is very unfortunate, but crimes that are in […]. In America, the LGBT community is surrounded by queer excellence and promotes pride to those who support gay rights. However, the new liberal mindset of people regarding characteristics such as race and sexual orientation would not be possible without the relentless protesters and dedicated activists who fought hard to make their views heard through a […].
Same-sex marriage can be defined as the practice of marriage of two individuals in which they are the same gender. Ever since April 2, , same-sex marriage has been legal and passed by U. The concept promotes equality between everyone through an emotional state of love. The U. Supreme Court declared that the states […]. Don't know where to start? Give me your paper requirements and I connect you to an academic expert. Plagiarism checker Do the check. Writing Help Ask for help. Paraphrasing Tool Paraphrase my essay. Essay examples. Essay topics. LGBT Community: LGBT Rights that have to be Improved Within the last few decades, the acceptance of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and trans relationships and marriages have gradually increased from atrocious levels in the s to a complete majority today.
Against Homosexual Discrimination and LGBT Rights Before the 20th century, there was rarely anybody to speak out against homosexual discrimination and LGBT rights. LGBT Rights: why they Matter Various movements towards civil rights for the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender LGBT community have begun around the world as early as during the Stonewall Riots. Homosexual Men and Women Throughout history, homosexuals have been widely discriminated against and mistreated, and only recently have gay and lesbian rights made great strides for human rights and being treated the same as a heterosexual person.
LGBT Tolerance in the Netherlands Introduction Amsterdam, the capital of the Netherlands, is frequently called the gay capital of the world. How has History Changed to Make LGBTQ more Accepted How has history changed to make people with in the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender community LGBT more accepted. Brokeback Mountain Review The movie Brokeback Mountain is the story about two young men Ennis del Mar portrayed by Heath Ledger and Jack Twist portrayed Jake Gyllenhaal after a night of drinking jack makes a pass at Ennis eventually having sexual relations with Jack, after stating it was a one-time thing after period the two characters develop a […].
Queer and Queer Culture Popularity Queer is now used to describe people who are neither heterosexual or cisgender Unitarian Universalist Association, Position Paper: same Sex Marriage As time goes on, laws and our society changes gradually. A Lack of Effort in the Industry to Create Content With the first moving picture created in and an estimated , more made since then, it seems unfathomable that minorities have only just begun to gain representation in Hollywood. The acquisition of the governing role by the Bolshevik party drove gays and lesbians into the underground. In , the article of the Criminal Code on imprisonment up to 5 years up to 8 years in case of physical violence for sodomy came into force.
Although same-sex sexual activity between consenting adults in private was decriminalized in , homosexuality is disapproved of by most Russians, and same-sex couples and households headed by same-sex couples are ineligible for the legal protections available to opposite-sex couples. Since , numerous regions in Russia have enacted varying laws restricting the distribution of materials promoting LGBT relationships to minors; in June , a federal law criminalizing the distribution of materials among minors in support of non-traditional sexual relationships was enacted as an amendment to an existing child protection law.
This is a good example for your gay rights cases essay, which should be focused on the serious problems the gay people still have to face. While homosexuality in the USSR was criminalized, in Europe and in the West, reverse processes progressed. Activists have achieved their goal only in , one hundred years after the first attempts. An important fact to describe in research essay on gay rights is that in Europe, in the s, the activists adopted the official symbol of LGBTQ, the rainbow, as well as developed a concept with basic political requirements, namely the legalization of same-sex relationships and the right to marry.
Recently, one more requirement has been added: the right to adopt children. The first country to legalize the registered love unions of homosexual couples was Denmark The Netherlands, the Czech Republic, and the Scandinavian countries followed the trend. In April , New Zealand also permitted same-sex civil unions. In December , the conservative United Kingdom became the next country to allow the legalization of homosexual relations. The number of gay people is less than that of heterosexuals, and they act as a separate social group. Since gays and lesbians are a sexual minority, there are certain problems associated with their discrimination, which can be described in the LGBT rights argumentative essay. The pressure was particularly strong in the past, yet it is still present, especially in states with a developed religious or ideologically oriented culture.
Previously, homosexual men were persecuted under the sodomy charges. Now, society is more tolerant to gay people, but not all elements of discrimination were eliminated. The movement for the rights of sexual and gender minorities that emerged in the middle of the 20th century was marked by the gradual positive change of attitude towards homosexuals. Equal treatment implies the abolition of the criminal prosecution for homosexuality as well as prohibitions on particular professions, and provision of the right to marry and adopt the children to same-sex couples.
It was also proposed to establish responsibility for manifestations of homophobia as a form of xenophobia. It is worth mentioning in a gay rights persuasive essay that many homosexuals, for example, Elton John, Domenico Dolce, Stefano Gabbana, Ricky Martin, Alan Turing, and others are well-known personalities. In Western Europe and the United States, many homosexuals are famous politicians. They occupy significant government officials, for example, San Francisco Board of Supervisors member Harvey Milk, Berlin burgomaster Klaus Wowereit, Paris mayor Bertrand Delanoe, German Foreign Minister, FDP party leader Guido Westerwelle, and others.
However, even these examples are sometimes not enough to change the opinion of society. In different countries, there are stereotypes that attribute caricature features to homosexuals, for instance, peculiar intonations of speech and gestures. You may prove that all this is nothing more than prejudice in gay rights argumentative essay. Despite the existence of numerous organizations fighting for the rights of homosexuals, many gays and lesbians prefer not to advertise their sexual preferences and sometimes even wear the mask of homosexuality opponents. In , Republican congressman Mark Foley was involved in a scandal connected with sending homosexual messages to young interns. The same congressman voted against the bill legalizing homosexual marriages.
The economist Richard Florida claimed that according to his research, the presence of gays and lesbians has a beneficial effect on the urban environment. He took the gay index of American cities and considered how it relates to other indicators of social development. It turned out that the more homosexuals there are in the city, the more innovations are made in it, and the higher the incomes of its citizens are. The researcher did not assert that only gays and lesbians are the creative and sophisticated class. Yet, their presence shows that all kinds of lifestyles are acceptable in the city. It is easy to be accepted by the surrounding people when you remain yourself.
Religious views on homosexuality. Homosexuality is considered sinful in the traditional and orthodox directions of Christianity, Islam, and Judaism. In the liberal directions of Christianity, the revision of the attitude towards same-sex marriages began in the second half of the XIX century. At present, individual liberal churches and denominations have abandoned the traditional Christian view on homosexuality. A similar phenomenon occurs in the confessions of Judaism. Condemnation of homosexuality in the religions of the East Buddhism, Hinduism was not so clearly expressed as in the Abrahamic religions. Instead, the liberal attitude toward homosexual relations was quite common.
The perception of same-sex families by believers can be very different. The most intensive sociological research in this area is being conducted in the United States. In recent years, a stormy debate about the attitude towards gays, and the possibility or inadmissibility of same-sex marriages took place here. Therefore, homosexuality research topics became extremely popular. Essentialism and constructivism in the study of homosexuality. Joint opinion on whether human homosexuality is the norm or deviation still does not exist.
The comprehension of sexuality in general and homosexuality in particular in science and journalism is mainly connected with the polemic of two fundamental approaches: essentialist and constructivist. In the essentialist approach, homosexuality is understood as the contrast to heterosexuality. Recently, arguments for such an understanding has been sought not in biblical moral prohibitions but in the biological genetic predetermination of a particular type of sexual behavior. The proponents of such an approach claim that sociocultural influences cannot change what a person is from birth. It might be better to build the arguments for gay rights expository essay on this point of view. Another theoretical perspective more suitable for an anti gay rights essay is based on the cultural analysis of sexuality proposed by the French philosopher Michel Foucault in his work Еhe History of Sexuality.
Foucault claimed that Western culture is full of sexuality. Foucault discovered that homosexuality was categorized differently in various cultures and different epochs. Thus, in some ancient classical city-states of Greece, a certain type of homosexual relationship between an adult man and adolescent was idealized as a social practice no less important than the traditional marriage between a man and a woman. The question of his personal erotic preferences was considered as secondary. Modern understanding of homosexuality as a particular sexual orientation was explained by Foucault not as a scientific truth but only as a product of an epoch and a picture of the world characteristic of this epoch.
The manifestations of homo- and heterosexuality in these peoples differ significantly from those which are known and familiar in Europe. Having adopted the ideas of Foucault, modern researchers made a significant contribution to the development of the anti-essentialist approach, which views homosexuality as a socio-historical construct. Sexual identity is understood as the result of a long process of socialization structured by cultural traditions, class characteristics, favored gender roles, or family history. However, this paradigm is not considered an unquestioning truth. Therefore, you can try to challenge it in gay rights are human rights speech.
Freud and homosexuality. At the beginning of the XX century, the fundamental direction of scientific views on homosexuality was set by the works of Sigmund Freud who believed that a person is bisexual by nature and that heterosexual preferences are formed in early childhood while children with some psychological malfunctions become homosexuals. At the same time, Freud was inclined to treat homosexuality very tolerantly and believed that therapy should be aimed not at changing sexual orientation but at correcting the consequent mental discomfort and acceptance of their own personality by the patient.
Biological fundamentals of homosexuality. Many representatives of the natural sciences believe that homosexuality is a biological feature of an organism determined by genetic or other innate factors. You can use this statement to make your argumentative essay about gay rights more convincing. Biological studies are conducted in the following main areas: homosexual manifestations in animals and search for genetic and hormonal characteristics that distinguish people with homosexual and heterosexual orientation. A number of scientific journals publish researches, in particular, the specialized Journal of Homosexuality. Currently, homosexuals are involved in scientific activities with the purpose of studying both the biological and psychological causes of homosexuality and sociological aspects.
Genetic research. Genetic features of gays and lesbians are still studied poorly. The search for homosexuality genes is being conducted by scientists since the s. As in many other studies trying to distinguish the inborn qualities and the acquired characteristics, important material for research was obtained from relatives of homosexuals and, in particular, identical twins. It was shown that homosexual men often have several older brothers. Homosexuality is inherent to both identical twins, even when they were brought up separately. Obtained results do not provide an opportunity to interpret homosexuality as a genetically fixed phenomenon unequivocally, but they also do not allow to refuse further searches in this direction. Indeed, some features of the genetic material of the surveyed homosexual men were similar.
Nevertheless, there were no significant genetic features inherent to all homosexual women. Studies of the hormonal system. A similar situation is observed in endocrinological studies devoted to the influence of hormones on the formation of sexuality. It was reported that an increase in the level of male hormones during the prenatal period leads to the homosexuality of the child regardless of sex. Also, you may mention differences in the size of the hypothalamus of homo- and heterosexual men in essay on gay and lesbian rights. However, in any way, studies do not cover all cases. In particular, patterns established for male homosexuality are not valid for women. It even makes some representatives of the natural sciences talk about the different nature of male and female homosexuality.
Homosexuality as a quality of personality. At the end of the 19th century, human rights activists questioned the attitude towards homosexuality as a pathology. In their opinion, there is no reason to perceive homosexual orientation as an illness if it does not cause damage to its bearer. The social harm of homosexuality was also challenged by researchers of the XX century. Throughout the century, in the course of the general development of liberal values, the conceptualization of homosexual attraction as a personal characteristic most likely congenital that does not require either medical or legal intervention was popularized. Does homosexuality contribute to a drop in the birth rate? The fall of the birth rate has indeed been a serious problem for European countries since the middle of the 20th century.
However, this phenomenon appeared several decades before the large-scale liberalization of the attitude of society towards homosexuality. The disintegration of a traditional family with a large number of children is the result of a complex set of factors. It is unlikely that the decriminalization of homosexuality played a significant role. The main contribution to the demographic decline in Europe was made by heterosexual families without children or with one child. Is homosexuality harmful from a medical point of view? Indeed, the traumatic and infectious risk associated with anal intercourse is relatively high, although other forms of sexual contact are also associated with certain health dangers. Strict adherence to hygiene and the rules of safe sex significantly reduce the risk, but, as in other cases, it does not fall to zero.
Anal sex is not an exclusively homosexual practice. Therefore, it is wrong to tie a negative attitude towards anal sex to homosexuality only. There are many phenomena associated with increased health risks in the life and activities of modern people. Injuries, including those that are deadly, may be inflicted even while driving a car. Many widespread types of food are harmful to health. Some sports are connected with significant risks for the body while training at a professional level. LGBT movement is a civil society movement that seeks to achieve legislation changes aimed at ensuring and protecting human rights for the LGBT community and promote social adaptation of its representatives in the society.
The opponents of this human rights movement are a variety of political and religious organizations collectively referred to as anti-homosexual unions. Gay rights in different countries. It is worth describing the legal status of homosexuality in the world in an essay on gay marriages. The attitude towards the LGBT community is rather heterogeneous in different parts of the world. As a rule, in Western countries, homosexuals and heterosexuals have equal rights. In many states of Western Europe The Netherlands, Belgium, Spain, Great Britain, Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Greenland, Iceland, France, Germany, Finland, Luxembourg, Northern Ireland, Slovenia, the Czech Republic, Switzerland since , as well as some countries of North and South America and South Africa, same-sex couples may enter into so-called civil partnerships or marriages.
At the same time, discrimination against people of homosexual orientation is also a common phenomenon whose roots go far into history. There is a significant number of states in Africa and Asia in which non-violent homosexual intercourse is perceived as a criminal offense punishable by imprisonment or death, for instance, in modern Iran, Afghanistan, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Somalia, Sudan, Nigeria, and Mauritania. In these countries, there is no open struggle for the rights of sexual and gender minorities since such activities may pose a threat to their freedom and life. In the Middle East, those identifying as LGBT typically face life or death situation in regards to their identity. This is because Sharia Law is widely practiced across Western Asia.
In Saudi Arabia, for example, exhibitions of homsexual and transgender behavior are punishable by fines, flogging, and even death. However, some nations are noticeably more progressive in terms of LGBT rights. Turkey is another country that consistently neglects the needs of its LGBT community. Istanbul also has a large amount of hate crimes against LGBT individuals. In , a transgender woman named Warda was brutally murdered and mutilated by a man who had purchased her for sex. This murder went highly unnoticed by the public and the police force in Istanbul. Unfortunately, this is not a rare occurrence in Turkey.
Crimes against LGBT individuals often go unnoticed and when they are noticed, they are often never solved. In Asia, LGBT laws vary widely by country. Some nations, such as Taiwan, are on track to be the first in Asia to legalize same sex marriage. However, in Brunei, legislation recently passed has deemed homsexuality punishable by stoning for men, and caning or imprisonment for women. In North America, LGBT laws have been much more progressive than other continents outside of Europe. While bullying in schools is still commonplace in the United States and Canada, discrimination protections on the basis of sexuality and gender identity are widespread. Additionally, gay marriage has been legal in Canada since , and legal in the United States nationwide since The Supreme Court decision ruling that homosexual couples were, by law, allowed to marry sparked great debate when it was first passed.
This ruling came less than two decades after President Bill Clinton signed the Defense of Marriage Act DOMA , which defined marriage as a union between only a man and a woman, thereby denying same-sex couples federal marriage benefits, such as access to health care, social security, and tax benefits, as well as green cards for immigrant spouses of U. Advocates for same-sex love rejoiced at this legislation, exclaiming that equality was finally attainable. On the other side side, opponents of gay marriage mourned the direction the nation was facing, firing back on social media with firm viewpoints.
Due to its highly controversial standing, the debate on gay marriage often brings forth the question: how does one determine right from wrong? LGBT youth often face adversity in their school, social and family lives due to differing opinions on whether or not their lifestyle is acceptable. On 18 April Nigel Shelby, a year-old high school freshman in Alabama committed suicide due to homophobic bullying. Nigel took his life because he was ostracized for having the courage to be himself, unfortunately his authenticity went unappreciated by his classmates. While tragic, LGBT suicides are not uncommon. A study by JAMA Pediatrics concluded that sexual minority youth were 3. Transgender adolescents were 5. Family problems and bullying most often contributed to suicides among LGBT youth in the study.
Although gay marriage is now recognized in the United States, the way LGBT people are treated in the United States has not exactly correlated with that triumphant action. Recently, there has been speculation about President Trump and his anti-LGBT policies. On 24 January President Trump placed a ban on transgender people serving in the United States Military. This action sparked controversy and conversation over whether the president was homophobic. The President has not directly said that he was homophobic, but his actions definitely correlate with homophobic beliefs.
LGBT organizations around the world have been responsible for several changes in the lives of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people. With many newly being formed in nations where it was never thought possible, there is hope around the world for LGBT individuals.
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