Chudda 1

Simar Kaur Chudda

Ms. Dodge

ELA 7

March 9, 2021

Sexual Inequality

Some think the LGBTQ+ love and marriage is not natural and shouldn't be supported.

Other's think that love is love, no matter who it is with. Stances regarding the LGBTQ+

community are hotly debated with most either opposing or supporting. There is middle ground,

though, with those who aren’t aware of the community. These people are treated unfairly

because of something they can't necessarily control. Arguements such as "It's not natural" or

"They're mentally ill" or even "They're contagious" aren't credible and can't be backed up with

facts.

To begin with, who are LGBTQIA+ indidviduals? The "L" in this acronym stands

for lesbian which refers to two women in love. The "G" stands for gay which refers to two men

in love. The "B" stands for bisexual which refers to a person who is attracted to both men and

women. The "T" stands for transgender which refers to a person whose sense of personal identity

and gender doesn't correspond with their gender and sexual identity at birth. The "Q" stands for

those who are still trying to figure out their gender and sexuality and where they stand in the

LGBTQIA+ community. The "Q" can also stand for questioning. The "I" is intersex and this

refers to individuals born with any of several variations in sexual characteristics that do not fit

the typical definitions for male or female bodies. The "A" stands for asexual which refers to the

lack of sexual attraction to others. The "+" is a signifier of inclusion and acceptance for all

experiences and it represents other sexual identities. One reason LGBTQ+ individuals are
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discriminated against is because of the discomfort that lies with homosexuality. This is the most

basic argument against LGBTQ+ as it states “It’s not natural.” Anything to do with LGBTQ+

love and marriage is supposedly in violation of the natural order of things. About 4.5% of the

U.S. population identifies as LGBTQ. This is an estimated 11 million people that are “in

violation” of the natural order of things. The reason this argument isn’t considered is because the

natural world didn’t create love or marriage. In the end, these are societal institutions that

humans created. Something that wasn’t created by or is connected to the natural orders of things

can’t be in violation of them. Interference with the natural order of things isn’t where the

discomfort lies, instead the discomfort lies with homosexuality.

Did you know that some examples of overt discrimination include being denyed equal

pay/goods and services, being denyed housing, being harrased and more. The legal definition of

dicrimination is the unequal treatment of persons on a basis of an identifying characteristic.

“Discrimination can refer to any sort of act or behavior that distinguishes or singles out

individuals on account of factors such as age, sex, race, national origin, sexual orientation, and

gender identity.” (Florin). For instance, statistics show that 46% of LGBTQ+ workers are

closeted in the workplace. The workplace is one of the most common places where

discrimination occurs. According to Naomi Goldberg, “Most Americans are shocked to learn that

we lack explicit laws protecting LGBTQ people from being fired for who they are and who they

love.” There are and were many nondiscrimination laws on the local, state, and federal levels but

until June 2020, federal law did not protect individuals from discrimination on the basis of sexual

orientation or gender identity. A second argument against LGBTQ+ individuals is based around

the basis of them being mentally and harmful to others. They’re sometimes treated as a walking,

living form of a contagious disease. This is only proven further as for a long time, it was
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considered deviant to fall for the same gender. Some believed that this was grounds for people to

be locked up in a mental institution and/or subjected to inhumane treatment. The irony in this is

that these discriminators are fighting fire with fire. Using inhumane treatment against someone

you believe is being inhumane is quite ironic. The fact that some people misinterpret the

Catholic and Jewish stances on this issue can sometimes lead to this conclusion, too. The reason

this argument is invalid is because it’s supported by things that people don’t have much

knowledge about and don’t understand.

Another couple arguments that tie in together are regarding LGBTQ+ marriage.

“Marriage is for procreation only,” is a surprisingly popular belief amongst LGBTQ+ opposers.

This argument argues that people marry solely for procreation. By saying this you ignore the fact

that people marry for a wide range of reasons such as love, friendship, and companionship. This

argument also forgets that many straight couples choose not to or biologically can’t have

children. Another popular belief is that same-gender marriage is a threat to the sanctity of

opposite-gender marriage. They think that allowing heterosexual couples to marry somehow

poses a threat to “traditional marriage.” Opposers think that somehow every time a homosexual

couple marry, a heterosexual couple will be at risk of divorcing. For one marriage between two

of the same gender, one heterosexual couple will divorce. This doesn’t make sense as it forces a

correlation-like relationship between two things that don’t exactly have anything to do with one

another.

LGBTQ+ love and marriage remains a hotly debated issue. You may think that this

community interferes with the natural order of things, poses a threat to the sanctity of other

marriages and procreation or you may think that these individuals are mentally ill, but in the end,
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none of these arguments are supported with concrete evidence. The fact remains that The

LGBTQ+ community is being discriminated unfairly.