Homosexuals are viewed with a suspicious eye in our society. A number of myths surround homosexuality, here's a list of the top 5 myths about the same.
Debunking myths about homosexuality
HIGHLIGHTS
- Homosexuality is subjected to a lot of shame and disgust
- A persons sexual orientation is purely biological
- Criminalising homosexuality will not increase or decrease its incidence
So what is homosexuality, it is a disease, a mental illness or just a temporary phase that would just pass with time? Homosexuality is not anything that has been stated above!
We live in a society where homosexuality is subjected to a lot of shame and disgust and even today, it is regarded as a mental illness. Even today in some cultures of our society, homosexuals are taken to psychiatrists and mental hospitals and are given electric shocks, hormonal injections and are subjected to torture just so that they 'come back to a normal state'. Sad it is that our world is such an unfriendly and intolerant place to live in for people with a different sexual orientation.
Shouldn't sexual orientation be treated as a matter of choice? Shouldn't it be treated as normal? Well, they should be but that wouldn't be easy to digest for some sections of our society.
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So here's a feed of the top five, most common myths around homosexuality and, the facts that are associated with them.
1. Homosexuality is a disease of the mind
'Your son is gay! He must visit a psychiatrist or a Baba to heal him from this illness.'
A person's sexual orientation is purely biological and a matter of personal choice. There is nothing absurd or incorrect with it. Scientific evidence shows that homosexuality is not a disorder and does not pose any threat to humanity whatsoever. It is just a form of sexual orientation as normal as heterosexuality. Hence, it must not be treated as an illness or a disorder of the mind.
2. Homosexuality will disturb marriages
Some people feel that homosexuality will disturb the male female ratio and the number of marriages taking place will decrease. Criminalising homosexuality will not increase or decrease its incidence. The institution of family and having kids will not get disturbed due to homosexuality. All that is required is acceptance.
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3. It is a result of western influence
Some groups tend to believe that gay and lesbian nature is actually coming from the western regions of the world. But here's a question, how can someone badger a person's sexual orientation in the name of his or her nationality? And even if you can, this uncultured and traditionally unacceptable tendency is actually mentioned in ancient scriptures like Manusmriti, Arthashastra and Kamasutra, then why do people consider it as an influence from the west? Indian mythology has a number of references of people engaging in homosexuality. Sex is just sex; it does not have any specifications of natural or unnatural.
4. Homosexuality is the result of sexual perversion
Sexual perversion is a form of non-consensual sex. It is not subject to sexual orientation of a person. Hence, if a person is homosexual and is engaging in consensual sex, it cannot be termed as an act of or a form of perversion. In some cases, homosexuality may not involve a sexual component hence eliminating all aspects of perversion. It is just a form of affection and love for a person of the same sex. When a person holds affection for another person, it must not be termed as an act of perversion.
5. Homosexuality is a tendency
Spiritual Guru Sri Sri Ravi Shankar recently stated in a lecture at the Jahawarlal Nehru University New Delhi, that 'homosexuality is a tendency'. When a student asked him what he should do about being abused at home and elsewhere for being gay, the spiritual leader told him that this is just a tendency and it shall pass too.
He explained that the boy should feel good about him and accept this tendency. This is a phase and it shall pass. During this speech, the word 'normal' was used for straight or heterosexual people. But is homosexuality really a tendency?
For this comment, the spiritual leader received a negative response from Sonam Kapoor who tweeted, "Homosexuality is not a 'tendency' it's something you are born as and is absolutely NORMAL. To tell someone you can change is irresponsible."
Why is homosexuality viewed with a suspicious eye in our society? If it really was unnatural, it would not have existed in the first place. Think about it...
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