Good article by Gary Greenberg at Mother Jones, Gay By Choice? the Science of Sexual Identity He asks, "If science proves sexual orientation is more fluid than we've been led to believe, can homosexuality still be a protected right?" This question is so obviously silly to me! Why do people believe that we can only have civil rights if we are "born" gay and "cannot change" our sexual orientation? Where did this argument that rights are based on biolovy come from? Our Constitutional rights are not based on biology, they are based on the principle that American citizens have the freedom to CHOOSE their identity, whether religious, political or sexual! It has NOTHING to do with biology! I've been making this argument for years now, and we are still arguing in the dark ages!
Of course people can and should be free to CHOOSE to be gay (or straight)!
See:
Choosing the Gay Option
Can Straight People Change?
Queer By Choice
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2 comments:
Jim,
You make a valid point. Civil rights should be based on the concept of personal freedom, not merely because homosexuals "can't help it."
But I have no idea what you're talking about when you say, "Of course people can...CHOOSE to be gay (or straight)!"
When did you choose to be gay? On what day and time did you rationally choose to be sexually attracted to other men?
I never chose to be gay. None of the straight people I know chose to be straight. Sexual attraction has nothing to do with Reason. (Nor decision making.) Sex is irrational and is not concerned with rational concepts like Inclusiveness or Equality.
Also, I know the idea of "fluid" sexuality is gaining popularity nowadays, but what is it based on? Fear perhaps? Are gay people really so terrified of being gay that they insist they are a little bit straight too? It seems tragic that gays so desperately want to be a little bit straight (and want straight people to be a little bit gay too). Embrace your irrationally exclusive gayness!
I said people should have the FREEDOM to choose to be gay or straight. I'm not saying everyone freely chooses their "sexual orientation", but that it is not totally determined by biology. And even if there are biological factors in the development of sexual orientation, people (gay, str8 or bi) do CHOOSE their sexual IDENTITY. My point is that the biological argument is not scientifically accurate and it does not apply to EVERYONE (bisexuals, those who do CHOOSE to be gay, etc.). We need a political strategy that is NOT based on ONE theory or factor in sexual orientation, and that supports the freedom to choose our sexual identities, regardless of how or why we become gay, bi or str8.
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