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The debate on homosexuality
Debate on homosexuality
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The issue of Homosexuality has been a popular source of debate for many, many years because of its controversial nature. Robert-Jay Green’s (2010) article From Outlaws to In-Laws: Gays and Lesbian Couples in Contemporary Society is an excellent literary source that depicts some of the major issues that homosexual couples and families have faced. The issues include legality of marriage, adoption rights, and societal attitudes toward homosexuality (Green 2010). This article was written four years ago and it is important to acknowledge that there have been major shifts within society in those four years regarding homosexuality. The changes greatly affected a lot of the issues that Green (2010) brought up in his article and some of the inequality mentioned is no longer prominent within society. The literary piece was written in 2010 and but in the four years that have passed many positive and progressive changes have occurred especially within the areas of legal recognition, portrayal in media and anti-gay attitudes toward homosexual couples.
One of the main topics of concern that Green (2010) discusses in his article is regarding legal standing within society for same-sex couples. Green (2010) argues that in the majority of states in the United States of America same-sex couples are not offered any legal standing or recognition of their relationship. In his article Green (2010) states that only twelve states in total offer any kind of legal status or recognition. However, since 2010 there have been many progressive changes within country regarding same-sex couples. The first legal issue that has changed is the number of states that have legal recogniztion for same-sex couples. Green (2010) stated that by 2009 only twelve states ac...
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...ia is another key player in reshaping how the society views homosexuality and same-sex couples and in the future there might be more and more shows with a focus on LGBT individual. This media change can be predicted because popular media is already starting to show same-sex couples in a positive light. Good Luck Charlie, Shameless, The New Normal, Spartacus, Glee, Game of Thrones are just a few popular media sources that have had a LGBT character on it since From Outlaws to In-Laws: Gays and Lesbian Couples in Contemporary Society article was published. The changes seen in the last four years with in the legislation, media and societal attitude show that time is the real solution because as time goes forward people tend to become more and more open minded and in the near future LGBT individuals will hopefully become accepted within society with full legal standing.
Abstract On June 26, 2015 a divided Supreme Court ruled in the landmark case Obergefell v. Hodges that same-sex couples could now marry nationwide. At the time of the split ruling there were 9 supreme court justices, 5 of the justices were Republicans, and the remaining 4 were Democrats. In high profile cases it is except that the justices will vote along party lines. When the 5-4 ruling was reveled by the following statement. “It would misunderstand these men and women to say they disrespect the idea of marriage. Their plea is that they do respect it, respect it so deeply that they seek to find its fulfillment for themselves. Their hope is not to be condemned to live in loneliness, excluded from one of civilization’s oldest institutions. They ask for equal dignity in the eyes of the law. The Constitution grants them that right (Corn,2015).” written by
“What’s ruining television today are those big productions – It’s the fairies who are going to ruin show business.” For some, this quote from The Jack Paar Show may seem unsettling. In the midst of a Supreme Court that has recently extended even more rights to a community so harshly oppressed, it is shocking to think that just fifty years ago, thoughts like this represented the majority opinion. The evolution of homosexuality in television has seen tremendous leaps and countless obstacles; yet what has emerged in the wake of it all is a form of media that has drastically impacted discourse surrounding gay men. This analysis aims to discuss the show Glee, as well as the key aspects of homosexuality that are portrayed. It will examine the characters
Society is created with both homosexual and heterosexual individuals. Previously when certain laws discriminated against others, such as law for women's rights to vote, these laws were changed. Changing the traditions of the country does not mean that it will lead to the legalization of other extreme issues. Each ...
The gay rights movement has made great progress in the United States, compared to generations ago, with the legalization of marriage in some states, and also the gaining of certain equal rights. Many people today accept homosexuals within society, and society in general is more...
Note: This paper has a very long Annotated Bibliography. In recent years, same-sex relationships have become more encompassing in US society. State legislation is changing such as accepting gay marriages, enforcing anti-discrimination laws, and legal gay adoptions; the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender community is becoming public. Gay-headed families, like heterosexuals, are diverse and varying in different forms.
Today television shows are widely praised for their portrayal of different characters sexuality. On Modern Family a same-sex couple’s life is shown through their relations with their family and raising a child. There’s also shows aimed at young adults that are receiving attention for their depiction of gay or lesbian characters such as Glee and Pretty Little Liars. Even the Disney Channel has shown a same-sex couple on the show Good Luck Charlie (with some backlash claiming that since Disney is intended for children that they should seek merely to entertain and not to push an agenda). On the contrary to this argument is the idea, that same-sex couples are becoming more and more normal thus they should make it recognizable to children.
Throughout history, efforts towards gay rights journeyed on an uphill battle and were not majorly successful until recent years. Starting with the Cold War period in the 50’s, there was a growth in homosexual couples in the urban subculture where they were investigated and harassed by the police. During the 60’s, however, the march towards gay equality took a left turn and there was an increase in gay rights activism. Some goals of the activists were to decriminalize homosexual acts, receive equal treatment under the law, and for people to be educated by unbiased facts about homosexuality. Their efforts prevailed and the activists achieved the following: the right to publish gay magazines, victory of discrimination of employment cases, constraints on police harassment, opening of dialogue in scientific and religious communities, media visibility, organizational impulse, and denunciation of how gays are a mistreated minority. Although they achieved so many things,
When television first appeared back in the 1940's, times were very different. What we would consider completely normal today would have seemed quite taboo just a few decades ago. For example, in 1953, Lucille Ball was not allowed to say the word "pregnant" while she was expecting baby Ricky and it wasn't until the 1960's show Bewitched, that we saw a married couple actually sharing the same bed. Considering how conservative the television networks were back then, it is not hard to deduce that something as controversial as homosexuality would be far from discussed or portrayed at any level. It was only in 1973 that television premiered its first homosexual character. Over the next three decades the emergence of gay and lesbian characters in television has increased and decreased as the times have changed. Due to the resurgence of conservatism that came back in the early 1980's, homosexual topics were again reduced to a minimum. Since that time though, as many people can see, there has been a rise of gay and lesbian characters on television. One might think after a first glance at the previous sentence that there has been progress among gay and lesbian communities to have a fair representation in the media. However, if one looks hard at the circumstances surrounding their portrayal, many people may start to believe that if there has been any progress then it has been quite minimal.
Throughout the recent history of America, gay marriage has always been an issue. With the different views and morals everyone has on the subject, it makes it hard for individual states to determine what side they should be on. In 1983 a Harvard Law School student, Evan Wolfson, wrote a thesis stating the rule of marriage equality. Justices concluded that gay couples were entitled to the legal benefits of civil marriage; and most crucially in the Supreme Judicial Court in Massachusetts, whose favorable ruling, in a suit by lawyer Mary Bonauto and the Boston-based Gay and Lesbian Advocated and Defenders, led to the nation’s first bona fide same-sex marriages…” (“Gay Marriage turns 10 and Credit Should Be Spread around- The Boston Globe). On May 17, 2004 Massachusetts became the first state to legalize gay marriages. In June of 2013, California legalized gay marriages, which helped their large LGBT (Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgendered) community. (“History and Timeline of the Freedom…”). When this finally happened, it was seen as a great achievement by Karmala Harris, a California Attorney. “This is a profound day in our country, and its just the right thing: ‘Justice is finally being served’” (“Court Gives OK for California Gay Marriages”).
Homosexuality is becoming more and more accepted and integrated into today’s society, however, when it comes to homosexuals establishing families, a problem is posed. In most states, homosexuals can adopt children like any other married or single adult. There are many arguments to this controversial topic; some people believe that it should be legal nationally, while others would prefer that is was banned everywhere, or at least in their individual states. There are logical reasons to allow gays to adopt children, but for some, these reasons are not enough. The main issue really is, what is in the best interest of the child? This type of problem isn’t really one with causes, effects, and solutions, but one with pros and cons. Like any other adoption situation, a parent prove themselves to be responsible and capable enough to raise a child on their own, or with a spouse.
The 1990s saw a surge of gay characters in both television and movies. From Ellen Degeneres and her character Ellen Morgan coming out under much scrutiny on the TV show ‘Ellen,’ to Julia Roberts and Rupert Everett comedically playing off each other in the motion picture ‘My Best Friend’s Wedding.’ Sure, gays and lesbians have been around forever, especially in Hollywood. But never has there been a time to be more out. With the popularity of shows like Will and Grace, which feature leading gay characters, as well as Dawson’s Creek
On television, I watched characters such as Marco del Rossi and Paige Michalchuk on the Canadian teen-drama Degrassi. These were the first positive experiences I had of what gay culture was like. Of what I saw, I did not feel like I fit into that lifestyle/group. On the other hand, the movie The Matthew Shepard Story shared the violent side of homosexuality’s history in the retelling of Matthew Shepard’s murder.
An issue that has, in recent years, begun to increase in arguments, is the acceptability of homosexuality in society. Until recently, homosexuality was considered strictly taboo. If an individual was homosexual, it was considered a secret to be kept from all family, friends, and society. However, it seems that society has begun to accept this lifestyle by allowing same sex couples. The idea of coming out of the closet has moved to the head of homosexual individuals when it used to be the exception.
...dual changes are closely related to the media because the actors carry out the roles and thus the members of the society play out those roles in their daily life style. “Homosexuality exists in different societies and cultures and with some minor exceptions it is considered abnormal and disdained. It affects social order, invades personal privacy and rights, and leads to criminal behaviour. As a result, homosexuals are more likely to encounter and be penalized administratively and criminally” (Likosky, 1992, pp. 38)
Media portrayal of the LGBT community is varying. It may be very positive and a “good” portrayal or negative and instead focuses on the stereotypical aspects of the LGBT community. One definition of a good LGBT television portrayal is one that depicts an LGBT character without over glaringly obviousness of their sexual orientation, or without adding many LGBT stereotypes that are all too often added.