The Supreme Court And "The Sexual Revolution"

It is a fair assumption to say that America is approaching a new age in understanding and accepting the many variations of human sexual orientation. More same-sex couples have fostered children than ever before in our nation 's history. Institutions such as military and professional sports have (slowly but surely) began to accept openly gay members. Most importantly, a recent amendment to the Marriage Act of 1961 now defines marriage as a union of two people; an amendment which removed the prohibition of same-sex marriages. These landmarks in the progression of social awareness surrounding sexual orientation are derivative of scientific findings disputing the "choice" theory. As outlined in Simon LeVay 's book, Gay, Straight, and the Reason Why, the result of someone 's sexual orientation "emerges from the prenatal sexual differentiation of the brain" (LeVay 2011: 271) What LeVay means in this context is, "whether a person ends up gay or straight depends in large part on how this process of biological differentiation goes forward, with the lead actors being genes, sex hormones, and the brain systems" (LeVay 2011: 271). Much research, proven and theoretical, has been done on the concept of what makes people gay. Many factors surrounding socialization in regards to sexual orientation have undergone extensive scientific scrutiny (LeVay 2011: 77). Although there is evidence that suggests social and environmental elements play a role in sexual orientation, it is

The sexual revolution of the 1960's was a time of great importance to modern America. The changes that occurred across America changed our country as a whole, its influence spread from LA to New York to the 'Heartland of America', Lawrence Kansas. This revolution occurred at a critical point in world history as well. A new type of society formed with soldiers returning from WWII and people began to incorporate themselves with those who matched their identity and not just those geographically near them. People were frustrated and they wanted their voice to be heard, and now they had a group of citizens who would back them up and help them in their revolution. American ideals changed drastically in the twenty years that followed World War two

The 1920’s ushered in a “new morality” and brought with it the” new women”, but it was not a sexual revolution. The legalization of birth control now sexualized women in a new way. The flapper

This paper examines the social aspects of the sexual identity in America, illustrating how sexual identities have progressed, evolved, and transformed. Social categories have been created as a tool used for social divide and control, inadvertently creating stereotypical facts and discriminatory opinions on sexes; while also helping create social and welcoming communities, whose goals are to diminish ideals such as those. Concluding, this paper will have explained the dichotomous categories of different sexualities and the divides within them. The already established sexual divide leaves no room for those stuck in the in between of today's society, especially one as progressive as America’s. Derived from the examples giving, this paper argues

Historically, sexuality has been a source of oppression, as well as pleasure and empowerment. The manner in which law recognizes sexuality is important for it produces a standard to be adhered to. From this standard, norms are established. The legal system acts a regulatory and governance body that acknowledges and legitimized cultural norms influence gendered identities. Cultural feminism suggests that gender disparities can be justified through biological differences. Gendered assumptions are therefore justified through reproductive capabilities, such as nurturing and domestic attributes of women. The analysis of law and cultural norms that perpetuate sexual danger and inhibit pleasure will be conducted through a sequential analysis of the three primary waves of feminism in light of Catherine MacKinnon and Gayle Rubin’s feminist critiques. Radical feminists such as Catherine MacKinnon argues that sexuality is the linchpin of women’s oppression. Gender is a hierarchy and a division of power, and therefore, women are inherently oppressed due to their sexuality. The source of sexual oppression originated from gendered patriarchy, specifically through woman being viewed as subordinates to their male counterparts. In contrast, sex-positive feminists, such as Gayle Rubin, reject sexual essentialism and suggest that sexuality is constructed.

Geiling, Natasha. "The Confusing and At-Times Counterproductive 1980s Response to the AIDS Epidemic." Smithsonian. 4 Dec. 2013. Web. 23 May 2016.

With the changing tides of how Americans view the common household, same-sex relationships have begun to become more widely accepted nationwide. Same-sex marriages and LGBT adoption are now legal in all 50 states. These recent steps in legislation have been monumental for civil rights, but what effect do they have on the physical public health of the gay population? From history, it is known that the spread of disease has been higher in “immoral” sexual practices; for example, in the 1930s, some hospitals refused admission of patients with STDs and private physicians did not wish to treat these patients due to the supposed “transmission” of the disease (Eng, 1997). Sexuality and the opinion of sexual behaviors can vary by socioeconomic status,

During the time of the AIDS epidemic, the Reagan Era was in full effect. As of 1982, President Ronald Reagan had not used the term AIDS in public, while his press secretary made jokes of the deadly disease. It is not until 1985, that Reagan speaks of AIDS publically to which roughly approximately 6,000 people have died. However, it isn’t until 1987 and 20,000 deaths later that Reagan identifies the disease as “public enemy number one” (The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation, 2003). The political events sparked public controversy since the medical community had made very little advancements pending the increasing death toll. It was with the three documentaries The Age of AIDS, Reporter Zero, and the feature film And the Band Played On the medical struggle was revealed.

Throughout both Week’s articles “The Language of Sex” and “The Invention of Sexuality” takes up the issue of an “essentialist approach to sex”. There are consequences to thinking about sex and gender as mainly caused by biological factors. If we change the word “breast” to “ankle” for the sake of argument. How does society learn that ankles are sexual, how did we come to learn that breasts are sexual? Perhaps by the media, dress codes or our parents. If we look at sex and gender from an essentialist approach we began to realize how unstable the concept is. Breasts are a body part and it is culture that has sexualized them, not biological factors. When people start to come out

Chapters’ four to six in the books; Intimate Matters: A History of Sexuality in America by John D 'Emilio and Estelle B. Freedman, Major Problems in the History of American Sexuality by Kathy Peiss and A Desired Past by Leila J. Rupp, the authors depict the history of sexuality by exploring various classes, culture, gender, race and sexual orientations. After reading the books, I questioned myself as to what is the meaning of justice and equality in terms of sex and gender. In modern societies, people are still arguing over controversial issues such as abortion, premarital and divorced wives’ child custody and homosexual marriages. I believe stricter control over women than men as women show their sexual expression and desire is unjustifiable. And it would only infringe on women’s freedom and equality in society. And after finishing the books, I came to the conclusion that the physical difference between the men and women was one of the reasons that led to the women being regarded as inferior in the past.

The United States in the 1960-70’s was in a turbulent time marked by a myriad of individual protests that could be traced to such absurd productions as peace and free-love, stopping the Vietnam war and civil rights for every citizen. The Civil Rights Act of 1964 was to prohibit discrimination based on race, color, religion and national origin as it was originally debated in Congress. The little word “sex” was later added by the powerful Southern Congressman Howard “Judge” Smith of Virginia (Shafritz, Russell, & Borick, 2013, p. 450). Smith was against equal rights for blacks as well as for women consequently believing that by adding the word “sex” to the bill, it would be seen as ridiculous thus causing it to be defeated.

Throughout centuries of generations, there have been many changes that have influenced sexual tolerance. Sexual tolerance is defined as “the acceptance of multiple sexual orientations and lifestyles, generally accompanied by the appropriate legal and civil rights” (Urban Dictionary, 2009). Though there have been improvements in tolerance, there are still many different views on the recent policies, laws or social trends occurring towards sexual and gender orientation. Every aspect of society, from the Department of Defense to local school departments, are beginning to adapt to this growth in gender identity and orientation. An article published by the New York Times (Rosenberg, 2016) addresses an uprising policy on the acceptance of

The book, “America’s war on sex: The continuing Attack on Law, Lust, and Liberty” by Marty Klein is a book that impacts on the sexual intellect of an individual. He is an American public policy analysts, author, educator, and sex therapist (Klein 6). Consequently, Klein is decisive of bowdlerization concerning the concepts of porn addiction, sex addiction, and anti-pornography movement. The book depicts how governments and religious right incorporates the regulation of information, health care, sexual expression, and entertainment to undermine the secular democracy of the society. According to Klein’s research, the today’s public policies are trying to resolve the wrong sexual predicaments. The policies ignore the genuine sexual issues that the American population is continuing to struggle with, which raises the demand for more suppressive approaches that does not work. The book’s target audience is the Americans and individual’s tasked with the formulation of the public policies. Klein presents a fast-paced and meticulous research that untangles the myths regarding aspects such as porn 's actual effect to the society, the failure of the public policy, and the so-called "activist judges" (Klein 30). The paper provides my evidence regarding reading of the book, gives a thoughtful analysis and critique, besides the general evaluation of the book.

Some kids look forward to that special day when they will be married. But they picture a man and wife, not individuals of the same gender. The constant battle for gay marriage is changing the foundation of society. "We, as a society, are concerned about adapting to a new social norm and legalizing gay marriage in America. The Obergefell vs. Hodges case showed that 57% of Americans favored same-sex marriage over the past decades, up from 30% in 2005, and 72% felt that legal recognition was “inevitable” (Pew 2015). The gay freedom movement began after World War II. It was waved from society's margins; its most outspoken proponents sought to overturn social convention, not join it. It was not at all inevitable that the movement would one day coalesce around marriage. In 1972, an activist wrote in a lesbian newspaper that she and her comrades “stand as the greatest threat to this society, far more than gun-carrying revolutionaries or bomb-scare groups blowing up the White House or the Chase Manhattan Bank”.The AIDS crisis of the 1980's devastated the gay community, but also mobilized it. Until recently, most gay victories were won at the local or state level; the federal government lagged. After Massachusetts became the first state to legalize same-sex marriage, in 2003, a backlash of ballot initiatives and referendums banning such unions swept much of the country, In a long-sought victory for the gay rights movement, the

Homosexuality has always been a very controversial issue here in the United States, there is no doubt about that, although over time acceptance towards homosexuals has been getting better feedback, but, it was not always this way. Early in the 19th century homosexuality was considered a mental disorder, some believed the “disorder” could be reversed with