Introduction
Sexual orientation has been the subject of acrimonious debates in a number of societies throughout the globe. It is optional to identify as heterosexual, homosexual, or bisexual in some societies and races. The acceptable tastes and inclinations in a society are governed by social norms, and any behavior that deviates from these norms is frowned upon and subject to repercussions. Since sexual orientation is inborn and cannot be changed, the political and scientific consensus over the past few decades has been that any discrimination against homosexual people is unfair. Nevertheless, there is a ton of proof to refute this belief, despite how crucial it is to the fight for gay rights. In general, homosexual individuals have many biological and behavioral traits that are different from those found in heterosexual individuals.
Biological Differences
Some of these biological differences associated with sexual orientation can be seen in brain differences, genetic influences, as well as prenatal hormone influences. Presently, there is enough evidence to suggest that sexual orientation, at least to some point, is influenced by biological traits. After an examination of the corpses of heterosexual and homosexual, a British American neuroscientist, LeVay, concluded that there is a connection between homosexual identity and particular regions of the hypothalamus. This study revealed that straight men have larger hypothalamus cell structures as compared to women and gay men. Another observation by LeVay is that there are changes in the brain with sexual orientation. This observation is completely supported by another theory that states all things psychological are also biological.
Neuroanatomy and Genetics
According to LeVay, the brain might not be a sexual orientation organ, but it is an integral component of the neural network involved in sexual behavior. This theory was reinforced by findings of another study that revealed that there was a parallel difference between 6% and 10% of sheep that displayed homosexual orientation and the more than 90% that had heterosexual orientation. Another study reported that corpus callosum, which is located in the brain, in homosexual men was up to a third larger than in heterosexual men and ladies. This study also revealed that the neuroanatomy of homosexual men is more similar to that of a woman than that of heterosexual males.
Genetics is another factor that has been found to have significant influence on sexual orientation. An investigation carried out, involving sets of twin brothers who were homosexual, showed that among identical twins, 52 % were both homosexual, while 22% of the fraternal twin brothers shared homosexual sexual orientation. This is an indication that although genetics is a factor that influences homosexual orientation, it is not the only causing factor.
Prenatal Hormones
Another theory that has been advanced is that twin brothers may share homosexual orientation because they have grown in the same prenatal environment. Irregular prenatal hormone conditions, mostly in animals and a few human cases, have been identified as a factor that influences sexual orientation. The structure of the brain's neural-hormonal control system among people with homosexual orientation especially after the middle of the second month, which is a critical period, indicates that they are usually exposed to unusual prenatal hormones. Investigations also showed that contact with these hormone levels predisposes the unborn baby to being attracted to fellow men later on in life. There is additional evidence that men with homosexual orientation and heterosexual women have spatial abilities that are more or less the same. At the same time, lesbians tend to have an anatomy that is atypical to that of a heterosexual man. Lesbians have a hearing system that develops in a transitional way because of influence from prenatal hormones.
Fluidity of Sexual Orientation
For many years, gay and lesbian rights activists have held the opinion that homosexual orientation is inherited and immutable. Gay and lesbian political organizations have used this argument to gain support for gay and lesbian civil rights. According to an article by Dahir Mubarak, Americans who believe that homosexual orientation is influenced by biological and genetic factors are more likely to support civil rights movements for gay and lesbians as compared to those who believe it is influenced by environmental factors. Scientists estimate that up to 70% of gay people are influenced by genetics to have homosexual orientation. At the same time, it is believed that 3% of gay and lesbian people can choose their sexual operation. The consensus is that homosexual orientation is genetically influenced, can be influenced by the individual's environment, and has a biological tendency.
Conclusion
Thus although scientists have discovered that gay and straight people have significant biological differences, there is not enough evidence to prove that humans are born with a sexual orientation that they cannot change for the rest of their lives. Most significantly, research has shown that sexual orientation can be fluid, especially among women who can move perceived boundaries of sexual orientation. At the same time, there are people who have moved from being straight to being gay and vice versa. This shows that sexual orientation can exist along a continuum, ranging from individuals who are exclusively homosexual to others who are exclusively heterosexual, and in between others who exhibit various forms of bisexuality. Sexual orientation can be distinguished from other aspects of sexuality because it refers to feelings and self-concept. Gender identity, on the other hand, is the psychological sense of being either male or female, while social gender roles refers to the adherence to cultural norms where one either exhibits female or male behaviors.
The notion that one has to believe sexual orientation is biological for them to be supporters of gay rights is flawed. Indeed, social scientists argue that the two beliefs are merely correlated, that people who hold one tend to hold the other. Although the law states that groups whose identifying characteristic is immutable should be accorded more protection from discrimination, it can be argued that there are far more fundamental reasons for gay rights to be protected by the law. One's sexual orientation does not impact on their ability to contribute to society. In their argument for immutability, gay rights activists should not dwell on biology but should instead highlight the fact that a person's sexual orientation is deeply woven into their identity and is inseparable from who they are as a person. From this perspective, it can be argued that sexual orientation is another core aspect of a person's identity which, as it has been shown, may not necessarily be biological. Just as in matters religion, it does not matter if the individual was born gay or they chose it. It is generally accepted that it is not right to discriminate against others on the basis of their religion. Just as people are allowed to believe what they want, people should be allowed to love who they want.
