Question

1. Define the term homophobia and discuss the social forces that promote it in American culture. Name 2 ways that concerned straight folks can help to educate others and decrease the occurrence of homophobic violence

Answer 1

Homophobia can be defined as a collection of negative attitudes and feelings or irrational fear and ignorance towards the sexual orientation of homosexuality or homosexual people namely, lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender (LGBT). More specifically, homophobia can be comprehended as the exhibition of contempt, prejudice, aversion and hatred or antipathy towards a specific sexual orientation.

It is important to note that different cultures have different interpretations of homosexuality. In western culture, the concept of same-sex sexuality may be comprehensible to a person. But "same-sex" orientation may not be a distinct sexual orientation for the person exhibiting it. Social forces promoting homophobia are the cultural beliefs and values that disregard homosexuality. There are social beings who strongly consider same-sex love and sexuality as a form of disorientation or deviation from the normal and acceptable standards of appropriate sexual orientations. There are adults whose sexual instincts have been nurtured under normal conditions, conditions created by heterosexual people. So it becomes difficult for such adults to manipulate their preexisting and rigid concepts regarding what is sexuality. A restricted form of socialization and transfer of negative attitudes from one person to another seems to be associated with the promotion of homophobia. People make it a point to limit their associations with people who exhibit heterosexuality, either to oppose homosexuality or to feel normal in the presence of heterosexual people. Transfer of negative attitudes takes place from prejudiced adults to children. Thus, adults reinforce the same negative attitudes in the next generation.

Straight can be comprehended as the most common form of sexual orientation in the world. Straight men are attracted to women and vice-versa. Straight people are perceived as normal in any culture or society. People have a positive attitude towards those who exhibit heterosexuality in the way desired and accepted by the culture or community. A form of conditioning or learning is known as classical conditioning can be used to eliminate the occurrence of homophobic violence or a form of intolerance towards homosexuality. Classical conditioning is learning by association. Therefore, straight people can promote campaigns led in favour of homosexuality, vehemently and stay associated with these campaigns consistently. In this way, people can gradually learn to associate the same positive attitudes towards homosexual people, that they have towards heterosexual people. Straight folks can create positive attitudes in themselves towards the heterosexual community by understanding that heterosexuality is nothing but a type or form of sexual orientation. They can then transfer the positive attitudes to their children so that these children frame a diverse community in terms of sexual orientations.