issues

Common Questions about Homosexuality

1. What is Homosexuality?
    - A person's sexual orientation is defined by their enduring emotional, romantic, sexual, or affectional attraction to other people. Homosexuality refers to people whose feelings are primarily for members of the same sex.

2. Who is a Homosexual Person?
    - A homosexual person is one who has an emotional and physical attraction to members of the same sex. A woman who is attracted to other women is called a lesbian. A man who is attracted to other men is called a gay man.

3. Does Having Feelings Towards the Same Sex Make Mean I am Homosexual?
    - No. Many boys and girls during early childhood and adolescence have same-sex sexual attractions or experiences but are not lesbian or gay. Many adults also have same-sex attractions or experiences, but do not consider themselves gay.

4. What Determines a Person's Sexual Orientation?
    - It is not known what causes homosexuality or heterosexuality. One theory is that sexual orientation is determined pre-natally. Another theory is that it is determined after birth by environmental factors. In any case, one's sexual orientation is said to be established by a very early age.

5. Can One's Sexual Orientation be Changed?
    - Since homosexuality is merely one of the variations of sexual behavior, a better question might be "should homosexual people change?" If so, why? Studies have indicated that attempts to change one's sexual orientation are usually unsuccessful and often lead to increased depression and suicide. Statistics show that the majority of homosexuals do not see any reason to change. Some, however, have found that accepting their sexual orientation has been difficult given the prejudice that lesbians and gay men have had to deal with. Social scientists have begun examining the effects of the distress that arises from this kind of prejudice.

6. How Many Lesbians and Gay Men are there?
    - Although figures very, studies have estimated that 10% of the population is gay for a significant part of their lives. It is difficult to determine the exact percentage as many of those who are fearful of prejudice hide their sexual orientation.

7. Can Lesbians and Gay Men be Easily Identified?
    - While you may be able to identify some lesbians and gay men, most gays, contrary to popular belief, are indistinguishable from other people. There is no single lesbian or gay lifestyle. Gays lead very diverse lives and work in all occupations in every part of the country and the world. Lesbians and gay men are singles and committed couples; intellectuals and jocks; rich, middle class, and poor; urban, suburban, and rural; black, latino, asian-pacific, and white.

8. Is Homosexuality a Mental Illness?
    - No. In 1973 the following resolution was passed by the American Psychiatric Association: "homosexuality, per se implies no impairment in judgment, stability, reliability, or general social or vocational capabilities." In many societies homosexuality is considered quite normal. This was the case in Ancient Greece and Rome, in many Native American cultures, and many present day societies such as the Netherlands, Denmark, Sweden, and Thailand.

9. Are Homosexuals Child Molesters?
    - Pedophilia, sexual attraction to children, should never be confused with homosexuality. Many studies have documented of child molesters are heterosexual men.

10. Are Homosexual People Promiscuous?
    - Not necessarily. Many gays are single and many are in long-term relationships. In a study done by Masters and Johnson, the differences in sexual promiscuity were between men and women regardless of sexual orientation.

11. Will Close Personal Relationships Between Adolescents and Adults of the Same Sex Lead to Homosexuality?
    - No. This fear of intimate friendships, particulary between males, has had negative effects on the mental well-being and relationships of men with each other. Displays of affection between men are customary in many cultures of the world. It is also very common among men and women who are heterosexual to express love and affection for members of the same sex.