LGTB Community Analysis

LGBT history has changed the way society works in the United States and has had an impact around the world. The homosexual community came as an impact to the world during the early 1900’s. They were considered different; odd, ill, and weak, but little did we know the effects it would have in today’s society and politics. The war, queer, and AIDs movements seem to relatively impact members of the gay and lesbian community the most. In an series of interviews in “Word is Out” conducted by Nancy Adair and Casey Adair, the reader is introduced into the lives of Pam, Rusty, and Pat; lesbian women living within their true identity during the mid-1900’s. Their stories consist of broken family relationships, marriage failure, and gender roles. To help one understand the dynamics of their relationships and lives, John D’Emilo talks about the effects of war and how it structures and damages the gay community and their opportunity for equality. Elizabeth Davis speaks about the Lesbian experience in public spaces that exposes many to find their character by associating with those that fit best to their community in “Lesbian Bar Culture in the 1930’s and 1940’s”. The LGBT community for centuries has won the spotlight in the news and many articles published in well know newspapers, but what many never get to hear or see are the struggle that many homosexuals face. Both gays and lesbians in the United States have received backlash because of their race, gender, and social class. The

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These two sexual identities are extremely similar but translate to vastly different experiences. Lesbians are the more prominent group in the LGBT community; they were far more visible in the media and established their own lesbian feminist organizations before the HIV/AIDS epidemic (Rust, “Neutralizing the Political Threat” 2). On the other hand, bisexual women lacked the support communities that lesbians enjoyed during the 1980s. Many organizations and colleges did not acknowledge bisexual existence until the late 1970s, when the letter “B” was added to the LGBT+ acronym (Hutchins 244). Evidence of tension between the two groups existed in the 1970s prior to the epidemic, where lesbian groups apparently regarded bisexual women as a political threat (Tucker 43).

In addition to the five hypotheses, Bond poses three research questions. The first research question posed is, “What type of sexual talk is depicted in media popular with LGB adolescents?” Bond argues that this question is important to consider because quantity is as important as quality. It is important for programs to contain “diverse portrayals” and “nonstereotypical, normalized depictions of LGB individuals.” A result of such portrayals would result in LGB youth having access to a variety of different identifications and assist with the development of “sexual socialization and eventual acceptance of their sexual identities.” The second research question is, “Will validating depictions of LGB sexualities occur more or less often than demeaning

Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender (LGBT) people face tremendous difficulties growing up in a society where heterosexuality is often presented as the only acceptable orientation and homosexuality are regarded as deviant. They continue to face discrimination and exclusion across the world in all spheres of life. Homophobic violence and abuse targeting LGBT people occur on a regular basis (Subhrajit, 2014).

Escaping the vast amounts of theories, viewpoints, and well written slants of the media is almost impossible for the common American citizens. America’s perceptions of the entire demographic has the capability of significant influence due broadcasts of various sorts. The Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender community, or commonly referred to as LBGT, has been a core group fear, scrutiny, and confusion within the reports of varied mediums of exposure since as early as the 1950s. The highly convincing nature of the media’s influence is deeply rooted as truth within the minds of just about every person in America. No matter where you look or turn, in this day and age you cannot avoid the topic of homosexuality. It is being discussed in the news, books, television shows, movies, and as we have most recently now in politics. Since they are labeled to be a minority group, the LGBT community is viewed very differently by society. Although there are many people who think there is nothing wrong with being gay, there are many who still believe it is immoral and abnormal. With all the diverse views floating around about homosexuals different portrayals and stereotypes can and have definitely derived from everywhere. These portrayals send intentional or sometimes even unintentional messages to the people on the receiving end of those messages, thereby shaping how those people view homosexuals. Since the media has such an immense impact on how homosexuality is viewed, it is extremely

"The first step toward change is awareness. The second step is acceptance,”(Branden, Nathaniel). Throughout history those who challenged societal norms have been ostracized and criminalized due to their unconventional lifestyle. Due to the initial progress of the American nation, there has been a slight increase of acceptance toward the LGBTQIA community, though recent presidential changes have contributed to a slight setback in the overall inclusion of all people into the norm society has set. Some people may argue that people of the LGBTQIA community will never be included in society, but the progress that has been made in the education about transgendered people, homosexuality’s interaction within communities, and the recognition of

Lesbians, like Gay men, Bisexuals, and Trans individuals, deserve unique spaces to discuss issues exclusive to them. The advancement of Queer identity and the preservation of Lesbian identity do not need to be mutually exclusive. By is establishing more exclusive spaces for some groups, as well as more spaces open to all LGBTQ participants, both communities can thrive, However, unlike these groups which have had an increase in established safe spaces, Lesbian spaces are being either “queered” or shut down. This means Lesbians have no places to call their own, or to strengthen their identities. “Lesbian” has become a symbol of regressive and exclusionary attitudes; while solidarity between Lesbians and the Trans community is imperative, Lesbians are entitled to safe spaces and the autonomy to reject any sexual contact they do not wish to engage in without fear of being deemed bigoted in response. These conditions, coupled with the negative connotations of Lesbianism, are not entirely new. Rather, they are the same threats Lesbianism has always encountered in a different cultural context. These conditions have played a significant role in the weakening of Lesbian identity. The loss of Lesbian identity and erasure of Lesbian history would be detrimental to the entire LGBTQ community, as Lesbians have a rich and unique history, as well as standing in solidarity with other community members. Though it is on the decline, Lesbian identity will not die until those with exclusive same-sex or same-gender attraction stop finding solace with the term. As many women continue to identify with lesbianism, these women deserve to be adequately

Individuals who identified as Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgendered (LGBT) remained largely silent and unseen in American culture until after the second World War. Prior to the World Wars, many LGBT identifying Americans hid their sexual orientation out of fear and shame. Individuals who identified as LGBT were never widely accepted and would always be discriminated against. The Homosexual “lifestyle” was portrayed as a threat to American Society and was always thought as to be morally wrong. Today, the LGBT community has surpassed many obstacles going through so much discrimination and now fighting many political battles addressing areas such as same-sex marriage

People in America tend to view media as an all-knowing, reliable source of information that affects their very lives. It’s no wonder that any form of demographic portrayal put in the media is automatically consumed by thousands of people every single day. This makes the mass media an important component in the society’s perception of many demographic groups. One of the most common demographic group thrown into the media is the LGBTQ. This organization was brought to America in 1988, however, sexuality is only a human feeling, existing from the time humans were evolved. The portrayal of the LGBTQ has evolved over time; Gays are more accepted now than they were around the 1950’s. “In 1980 to 90 the

With Supreme Court of the United States declared Same-Sex Marriage Legal in all 50 States on June 26th, 2015(Chappell), many same-sex couples and their supporters cried tears of joy in the rainbow lights shining on the White House. When celebrating this historic victory of LGBT(lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender)’s love, people witnessing this significant moment would probably wonder what made a increasing number of people in the society understand the LGBT community better and support it. As LGBT individuals take on the important jobs like lawyers and doctors, they play more and more significant roles in the society. Meanwhile, as the thinking of contemporary people becomes more open and progressive, abundant organizations are appearing to struggle for LGBT’s rights. The influences of the media and daily discussions can never be ignored. Although the increased exposure causes a short-term and inevitable backlash to controversial communities such as the LGBT community, covering the topic of LGBT broadly and frequently in the social and mass media and discussing the idea in everyday interactions improve society’s comprehensive understanding of the community more than it harms the community.

The Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender community have been the victims of discrimination and prejudice since the Post War Period. Although it is not documented, lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender relationships have existed in many different cultures for many years. However, this community was not accepted which created a state of secrecy and shame among them. The LGBT community has had many obstacles preventing them from feeling like a complete part of their communities. Throughout history, LGBT individuals have been portrayed in society as inferior compared to the heterosexual society that exists. Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender individuals were considered mentally defective and/or morally dissolute by 75% of the population, and a little more than 20% were unsure. (Underwood, Alice, 43) The sense of inferiority towards LGBT stirred up several issues in society and in the politics. They have been denied access in the military, had health care limitations, and have been a prime target in the issue with aids. Over the years there has been increased violence and discrimination towards those who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender. In modern times, relations have slowly began to change and LGBTs have been accepted by many. The LGBT movement sparked and has made a lot of progress over the years.

The media is a powerful tool in the twenty-first century that we are living in, and along with people on social media, it can make an impact on the world as a whole. In terms of the LGBT community, the people apart and not apart of this group can be greatly impacted by what people and the press say and do. Unfortunately, just as there is with everything else, the stereotypes related to the body of people in it is great. Through these, there is a great impetus at odds with everyone and anyone apart or leaning towards the LGBT community. In 2012 there were 9 million people apart of this community, a number that has obviously risen since (Gates). The amount of people who are in the group is hard to identify because the census currently does not ask of sexual orientation, thus it is hard to measure. Also since gay marriage was deemed legal on June 26, 2015, there has been a great rise in the number of LGBT community members. Since there has been a great rise, the amount of bullying and harassment towards these people has also greatly raised which is where our problem begins. Since there is a persistent presence of this problem, the people who are apart and are on the edge of almost being apart, fell more and more threatened by the day.

I live in Los Angeles, the home of where we strongly support “ the lgbtq community,” a place where gay community and heterosexual individuals can appreciate differences in sexual orientation and support youth that are in need of assistance and love. In my own personal experience, even though I am straight, the lgbtq community can be especially found in liberal states like Los Angeles, a place where democrats and liberals come together. In Los Angeles, not only communities and centers that support lgbqt community, there are also many performing arts schools and colleges which supports gay and lesbian rights. Lgbqt is not just found in one community, but many parts of the world. In readings, Audre Lorde’s Zami : A New Spelling of My Name and George Chauncey’s “Why Marriage, explores the struggles for equal LGBQT rights, and teaches us a lesson about a philosophical concept built on ideals of freedom, equality, and human dignity on LGBQT community.

The main issue concerning LGBT people is “coming out”, which is the process of understanding, accepting, and valuing one’s sexual orientation/identity. Coming out includes both exploring one’s identity and sharing that identity with others. LGBT individuals have to deal with what it means to be different in a society that tends to assume everyone to be heterosexual and that tends to judge differences from the norm in negative ways. This process creates cognitive dissonance within the person. Because society teaches that the norm is to feel attraction to people of the opposite sex, when a person experiences the opposite feeling finds him/herself in a state of confusion, discomfort and fear of rejection. The coming