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Hate Crime Essay

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Additionally, hate crimes towards the LGBT community are on the rise. Offenders with negative views of LGBT people are inflicting pain onto those they deem sinful. According to the FBI, sexual orientation motivated nearly 18% of all hate crimes in 2016. Though the number may not seem excessive, sexuality is currently the third leading incentive for hate crimes and rising (FBI). For instance, in 2016, the New York Times reported Omar Mateen, an American who pledged allegiance to ISIS, attacked an LGBT nightclub killing 49 and wounding 53 (Barry et al.). He deemed them undeserving of life because of their sexual orientations. Furthermore, persecuting someone for their decisions normalizes the inadmissibility of personal choice for sexuality.…show more content…
Another area that demands acceptance towards sexual orientation is by parents. The average American has heard about an instance where someone “came out of the closet.” Although, most people don’t think about what happens after they tell their parents the truth about their sexuality. For millions of teens across America, their situation results in either running away or being kicked out. According to the TrueColorsFund website, homelessness is experienced by over 1.5 million youth a year, and up to 40% are LGBT. Considering the LGBT community is far smaller than 40% of the entire youth population, a problem is obviously occurring. To extend, the leading cause of homelessness is family disputes over the child’s sexuality (Durso and Gates 4). When a child tells their parents, a negative reaction is expected. In many cases, though, the parents overreact and kick them out because they think abandonment will change their mind and the child will come crawling back. Not accepting their child surrenders them to possibly years on the streets, exposing them to drugs, rape, and prostitution. When their parent’s rejection combines with the common mental health issues of LGBT teens, suicide rates skyrocket. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, “Nearly one-third (29%) of LGB youth had attempted suicide at least once in the prior year compared to 6% of
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