A Clear Understanding Of Gay And Lesbian Families Essay

This paper will continue on, researching the societal change/acceptance in the gay and lesbian community as no longer being unorthodox and with the stigma coming from the gay community itself.

Same-sex parenting is taken both in positive and negative sense but even then it is regarded more as a family issue. There is a concept that where lives a same-sex couples, there must be children raised by them. Then it comes to mind that which sort of children? Such children may be divided into three groups: (Kurtz, 2004)

in what we call the real world a family can be defined as a range of

The conception that lesbians and gay men may be parents is frequently perceived in today 's society as impossible or immoral. Gay men and lesbians are often viewed as excluded from having children because sexual reproduction is related to men and women couples only. My approach to this uniquely controversial topic of gay parenting will be that of attempting to analyze the pro side. Gays and lesbians are human too and who is to say that they don 't deserve equal rights in society. Society has to realize that the modern family has developed into many different forms in recent years in that the traditional "nuclear family" is not necessarily the

Throughout history the predominant family has been the nuclear family, consisting of a white father, mother, and two children. In the article “Family” As A Site of Contestation, Owen explains that lesbians have endured a great amount of controversy when being observed as a family. “Lesbians challenge the concept of “family” by having and

With more and more people coming out and developing their sexual identity each year. I feel as future social workers we have an obligation to support and respect this community as well as each person's identity. Our job involves understanding this population and advocating for equal rights for all individuals. It is clear that the concept of social justice will not be realized until society can embrace the notion that different does not mean bad.“The only idea involved in all questions of sexual orientation are the great transcendent issues of justice and love. Acceptance of the homosexual community will leave both communities free from the need to conform to narrow stereotypes and free to develop all the qualities that belong to the fullness of the human personality.”( Blackwell, C. W., Ricks, J. L., & Dziegielewski, S. F.

Gay and Lesbian research is inquiry that focuses on the lives, experiences, and meanings of those who are socially identified as lesbians; this identity label is temporal, culturally determined, and socially constructed. Today, lesbian refers to women who are primarily sexually and romantically attracted to other women. Lesbian research is indebted to the advances and insights of feminism, a movement for social justice centered on women. Reflecting on this historic connection, lesbian research has attempted to redress the imbalance of attention to dominant groups in traditional

In Julie Maroh’s book Blue is the Warmest Color, the author illustrates the life and reality of a young teen, Clementine, who is starting to notice her feelings for women, as a lesbian, and also coming out. Coming out is a process which begins when we first admit to ourselves that we are lesbian.  By either acting on your true feelings or living the rest of your life a lie depends on when you admit to yourself. In this research paper I will be focusing on lesbian stereotypes, family views and how people are treated once they come out. Even in todays world, most women who are lesbian, choose to hide their sexuality behind dating or marrying a man. As well as hiding their sexuality from family and friends.

However, this process can difficult for someone who is homosexual, many minority cultures frown upon being gay or lesbian, it is hard enough for homosexuals to be accepted amongst their family, because once they “come out,” they are exposed to a new set or norms and life-style, which goes against the traditional way of living and beliefs. In this article the authors explain the bicultural process for those who are homosexuals, explaining that a homosexual must first find a way to be accepted amongst their minority culture, and then expose themselves to the majority culture through socialization. However, when socializing with the mainstream culture as a gay or lesbian, many times that leads to further issues in areas such as marriage, family, parenting, education, and religion. Not only is a challenge for them to be accepted in these areas by society, but there are actual laws and legislations that exclude them from these

Weeks, Jefferey, Brian Heaphy and Catherine Donovan. “The Lesbian and Gay Family. The Blackwell Companion to the Sociology of Families. Scott, Jacqueline et al. Eds., Blackwell Publishing, 2004, pp.340-355.

The daily life of children in homosexual families will help to further advance a better understanding of the daily family life of children with parents of the same sex. Research shows that children within these same-sex families have an “inclusive and flexible” (Bosisio 9) representation of family. Along with this representation in, “Peer Relations Among Adolescents With Female Same-Sex Parents” this “suggests that important decisions about adolescent lives (such as custody determinations) should be made not on the basis of parental sexual orientation, but by focusing instead on the qualities of adolescents’ relationships with parents” (Wainright 125). Quality of parent-child relationship is an important factor in any family. As this is seen as a similarity between the heterosexual and homosexual families, there is also that one up that a statement has to be made about child on behalf of their parent’s sexual orientation. “Children are uniquely vulnerable. A range of international human rights laws aim to protect the family rights of children and recognise that the family often makes a vital contribution to the happiness and security of children’s lives” (Hodson 519). Children in general do not have a choice to what type of family dynamic they become involved in. Whether they are born into a family, or adopted into one, it is not based on the choice of the child. Because of this, the happiness of these children comes into question. A valid family by law is not continuous throughout the world, so if the family is not recognized as real, it effects the children, and leads them to question then what they are. In opposition to Bossio’s claim that children have a inclusive and flexible description of family is the work of Jacky Coates’ and Richard Sullivna’s, “Achieving Competent Family Practice with Same-Sex Parents,” they claim that “we do not yet live in a post-heterosexist world, and

Gay marriage is a very talked about topic in are country that shouldn’t be ignored. I believe men and women should be able to love freely and not be shamed by it. Marriage is a great factor in the United States. To some people it’s what we live for; is to get married and start a family. To not give everyone the same opportunity to have a happy marriage and family is unlike us. This problem is bringing a lot of hate, the same hate that was used in racial discrimination so why not give gays equal rights like everyone else. Andrew Sullivan wrote a article that shares his experiences of coming out and being accepted. When puberty hit he started to realize he wasn’t the same. He knew that his marriage is not going to be the same as his

​For my ethnographic research paper I chose to study the life and struggle of Lesbians at work, school and on television. For this paper I will refer to the people that I interviewed by different names so that no one can be offended or embarrassed. The main focus of this ethnographic essay is to compare the lives on the television show the “L” word to the lesbians in real life and to focus on the feelings lesbians have as mothers. In “Gender, Genetics and Generation: Reformulating Biology in Lesbian Kinship” by Connie P. Hayden which focuses on the role of biology in relationships, sexuality and gender roles. Hayden discusses the role of blood relations and biology in relation to the “kinship theory” throughout the United States. The article also focuses on lesbian couples and their issues to be recognized as a nuclear family. Questions that I will be asking are how do lesbian mothers prepare for parenthood? How do they share the responsibility between the two? How do gender identities impact the role as a mother? And how do lesbian mothers who did not birth the child have satisfaction. Although lesbian motherhood is the focus of the ethnography; Lesbians that are not yet mothers and single lesbians also play a very important role.

There are critics who feel that the stigma in our society toward gays being accepted is a conflict of issues. This form of relation may affect the welfare of a child’s upbringing. The prospect of a nontraditional upbringing in a same-sex partnership, or marriage ought to be a problem when raising children. Some feel that there is no real negative influence that this form of parenting has on a child. Politics has raised concern, but there is a limited amount of research in this area to corroborate this concern. Should same-sex marriage be an issue when raising children?

Nowadays, the question of gay marriage is one of the most heated and controversial. Over the years, same-sex couples are fighting for the legal recognition for their marriages and their right as parents. Parenthood is one of the most valuable experiences in a human life. After finding a partner, it is natural for people to want to raise children. Homosexual parent are the same in ability and commitment to raised healthy children. It would be a big step for improvement in our society to provide necessary support and rights for same-sex couples and their children.