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Sexuality
By Elsa, a college freshman
November 10, 2008
On November 4th, the United States held an historic election, putting a black man in the oval office for the first time. Also on the ballots of several states, however, were measures to ban gay marriage. In California, Arizona, and Florida, gay marriage is now illegal, and in Arkansas, gay couples can no longer adopt children. Though most teenagers can not vote in elections yet, these laws affect the teen gay population a great deal. Surely it is hard enough for a teen to come out to his or her parents and friends without such tangible evidence that approximately half of the population does not acknowledge the rights of the gay community.
Though coming out is becoming much more accepted thanks to a lot of hard work, it is still an incredibly difficult choice. Many gay teens are trapped; if they don not acknowledge to themselves and to the people around them that they are gay, then they must face the reality of feeling different or wrong for the rest of their lives. On the other hand, coming out is an unknown; while some people are willing to accept a gay teenager for who he or she is, it cannot be denied that other people react with fear and even violence. Parents in particular, though they might accept the gay community as a whole, might find themselves questioning their acceptance when confronted with the sexuality of their own child. It might seem like it is not worth the risk to a lot of gay teens: parental estrangement, bullies, and lost friends are all terrifying concepts. At the same time, not speaking means locking a huge part of life away, and even giving up all chance of loving who you want, where and when you want.
VOCABULARY:
lesbian: a woman who is romantically or sexually attracted to other women
gay: a man who is romantically or sexually attracted to other men
homosexual: someone who is either gay or lesbian
bisexual: a person who is romantically or sexually attracted to people of either sex
transgender: someone whose gender identity does not match their sex (i.e. a man in a womans body). This includes transvestites and transsexuals
transvestite: someone who displays gender discordant behavior, but keeps their original gender identity
transsexual: someone who intends to live as member of a gender other than the one they were assigned to at birth based on their sex organs.
asexual: someone who does not experience sexual attraction
November 10, 2008
On November 4th, the United States held an historic election, putting a black man in the oval office for the first time. Also on the ballots of several states, however, were measures to ban gay marriage. In California, Arizona, and Florida, gay marriage is now illegal, and in Arkansas, gay couples can no longer adopt children. Though most teenagers can not vote in elections yet, these laws affect the teen gay population a great deal. Surely it is hard enough for a teen to come out to his or her parents and friends without such tangible evidence that approximately half of the population does not acknowledge the rights of the gay community.
Though coming out is becoming much more accepted thanks to a lot of hard work, it is still an incredibly difficult choice. Many gay teens are trapped; if they don not acknowledge to themselves and to the people around them that they are gay, then they must face the reality of feeling different or wrong for the rest of their lives. On the other hand, coming out is an unknown; while some people are willing to accept a gay teenager for who he or she is, it cannot be denied that other people react with fear and even violence. Parents in particular, though they might accept the gay community as a whole, might find themselves questioning their acceptance when confronted with the sexuality of their own child. It might seem like it is not worth the risk to a lot of gay teens: parental estrangement, bullies, and lost friends are all terrifying concepts. At the same time, not speaking means locking a huge part of life away, and even giving up all chance of loving who you want, where and when you want.
VOCABULARY:
lesbian: a woman who is romantically or sexually attracted to other women
gay: a man who is romantically or sexually attracted to other men
homosexual: someone who is either gay or lesbian
bisexual: a person who is romantically or sexually attracted to people of either sex
transgender: someone whose gender identity does not match their sex (i.e. a man in a womans body). This includes transvestites and transsexuals
transvestite: someone who displays gender discordant behavior, but keeps their original gender identity
transsexual: someone who intends to live as member of a gender other than the one they were assigned to at birth based on their sex organs.
asexual: someone who does not experience sexual attraction
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