Insanity Land

Against Homophobia

May 17, 2010 at 9:55 am (Uncategorized) (equality, gay, heterosexual, homosexuality, rights)

Today is the International  Day Against Homophobia. I know that I have written here about sexuality before but in this blog post I really want to go more in depth not only into my own feelings about homophobia but also about its history.

The word homophobia was first used (or at least first credited to be used) in a speech by George Weinberg, who was a psychologist, and was the first to use it as the term in which it is now known (as a phrase referring to an aversion to homosexuality). However its first outing in print was  in May 1969 in a copy of American tabloid Screw. In this article the word homophobia was used in the context of referring to heterosexual men fearing that others may think they’re gay. What does this prove? That even at its very origins homophobia was something which was shrouded in a veil of ugliness and prejudice.

Religion has, of course, not helped the fight against homophobia. Judaism describes ‘a man lying with another man’ as an ‘abomination’, many of the different denominations of Christianity denounce homosexuality as a sin, all Islamic sects disapprove of homosexuality, the highest temporal Sikh authority (Giani Joginder Singh Vedanti) claimed that homosexuality was “against the Sikh religion and the Sikh code of conduct and totally against the laws of nature”. With such influential negative opinions of homosexuality it does beg one question. If God, any God of any religion, is supposed to be loving of all their creations why then do they condemn their children because of who they fall in love with? Why is it right to preach love and kindness with one voice and yet with another almost simultaneously cast out individuals because of their sexual orientation?

Robert Mugabe, leader of Zimbabwe, has openly waged an all out war on homosexuality. Laws have been introduced banning the practise and he once announced, “If you see people parading themselves as lesbians and gays arrest them and hand them over to the police!”. In 2009 research by the ILGA (International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association) found that 80 countries around the world consider homosexuality to be illegal. What is more, five of those countries (Iran, Mauritania, Saudi Arabia, Sudan and Yemen) carry the death penalty for homosexual activity. Since 1979 (when the Islamic Revolution in Iran occurred) the Iranian Government has executed more than 4,000 people charged with homosexual acts. With facts and figures such as these I for one begin to wonder what kind of a world we live in.

This is what it comes down to. People are being persecuted for who they love. Men and women the world over are suffering because they love someone. What right has anyone to condemn a person over such a personal thing? Love is supposed to be the most beautiful thing in existence and yet what have we become but a society in which we condemn that which we do not agree with. Who has the right to say who a person can or cannot love? Not me, nor you, nor in my mind any single person, group, organisation, government…it’s all the same when it comes down to it.

So I will end with this. I don’t care if you are gay or straight. I don’t care if you haven’t decided yet. I don’t care if you’re bisexual. I don’t care if you cross dress or you’re transsexual. You are a human being. You have the right to love whoever you want to love and be happy. Nothing and no one will ever change that. I beg you all to have a thought for those who have suffered and even died for their sexuality. One day I hope that everyone will be free to love regardless of prejudices. But until that day I for one will not stop fighting for equality. Yet I am just one person. So, I hope to see you beside me on the battlefield.