Heterosexism and LGBTQ Discrimination
Heterosexism is the dominant sexuality in the society that refers to the prejudice and discriminatory practices and attitudes against homosexuals. The conviction that every societal member is straight has however been challenged by other forms of sexual orientation that include the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and the queer (LGBTQ). The LGBTQ group faces discrimination in employment opportunities, and attacks and violence (Ozeren, 2014). The society highly stigmatizes these people and considers them immoral. This essay will discuss the gay community, their historical background, current terminology and the issues they face in relation to cultural pluralism. It will also discuss the ramifications of these issues. Gay people face great challenges in coming out, exploring their sexual orientation and disclosing it to others.
The Gay Community
The Gay Community
Gay is the word used to describe the sexual orientation of homosexual men. The term gay initially meant bright, happy or carefree, but by the 20th century, it became the word that described people, cultures, and practices of homosexuality (Kulick, 2000). The gay term originates from the Old French in the 12th century and was commonly used in literature and speech. It acquired sexual connotations over the years and only came to describe homosexuals in the 20th century. Following discrimination, gay men chose to use a coded language, Polari, to communicate. Polari contained Italianate phrases and rhyming slangs and some of the words can be found in the dictionary today despite the rare use of the language (Kulick, 2000). The gay community is gaining a new label known as the queer. The word queer initially meant odd, strange, offensive or shady. However, it is steadily being accepted as the LGBT community has reclaimed the word and eliminated the hateful connotation. Nevertheless, not all gay people have reclaimed this blanket label.
Current Issues Faced by the Gay Community
Current Issues Faced by the Gay Community
Gay people face developmental challenges during adolescence than heterosexuals. The processing of coming out as gay may be very challenging since one needs to recognize oneself as gay, explore the LGBT community, disclose the sexual orientation and become comfortable. Moreover, gay people face homophobia. Heterosexuals may sometimes express their fear through discrimination and violence (Ozeren, 2014). This discrimination is preceded by homophobic language. Gay people have also become victims of sexual assault and have reduced access to medical services because of the attitudes of the society around them including healthcare professionals.
Ramifications of the Issues
Ramifications of the Issues
While this group is increasingly being accepted by the community, there is the constant uncertainty of being accepted in services, by friends, colleagues, and families. The pressure of handling such uncertainty has an impact on their health. Gay people have higher rates of mental disorders, obesity, alcohol consumption, smoking and self-harm (Ozeren, 2014). All these effects result during the process of coming out, the guilt and shame experienced, the rejection in the community, and the homophobic harassment and jokes at places such as the workplace.
Conclusion
Conclusion
Conclusively, the behavior and attitudes of the society have a huge impact on gay people. The developmental challenges, homophobic harassment and violence and sexual assault are challenges that can affect the overall health of these people. LGBTQ continually fights for this group and as much as the society has tried to accept them, there is still discrimination (Ozeren, 2014). Such rejection may result in the development of health conditions. The societal members including managers at work and health professionals need to eliminate the homophobia by treating every individual not as heterosexual but in a fair and appropriate way that respects one's sexual orientation.
References
Kulick, D. (2000). Gay and Lesbian Language. Annual Review of Anthropology, vol. 29, pp. 243-285.
Ozeren, E. (2014). Sexual Orientation Discrimination in the Workplace: A Systematic Review of Literature. Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences, vol. 109, pp. 1203-1215.
