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Emily Marhoffer

Professor Rodrick

English 115

19 October 2019

Illegal Love

Imagine the feeling of falling in love. Now, imagine the feeling of anxiety coursing

through your body. Finally, imagine they’re the same feeling. For many, it’s hard to even begin

to imagine these two feelings being remotely similar to each other— but for people of the

lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) community, this comes as a reality. Anxiety

amongst sexual minorities is common because they don’t fit into societal expectations, thus

aren’t considered acceptable. The LGBT community faces challenges through heavy oppression

from individuals encountered on a daily basis, homophobia, and through government placed

laws, which in turn has resulted in an overall decline in quality of life.

Every person, no matter sexual preference, goes about one’s everyday life while

internalizing words heard throughout the day. While this is normal, it can be detrimental when

things heard are offensive or targeted toward one’s nature. Ana Perez, a human rights activist,

wrote a journal entry titled “Internalized Oppression: How it Affects Members of the LGBT

Community” which discusses the impact that oppression against the LGBT community has and

the effects of homophobia. In the journal, Perez states that “words [such as] ‘faggot,’ ‘sissy’ or

‘gay,’ as an insult or to express dissatisfaction with a person’s behavior is common at school

campuses, football fields, and even in workplaces” (Perez 26). These are places that most people

visit on a day-to-day basis, meaning hearing these things is almost unavoidable. How many times
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have you heard the word “gay” used to describe something being negatively? Probably more

than once. So, what are the odds of someone in the LGBT umbrella hearing these terms being

used in a derogatory manner? It’s not surprising that a book discussing anti-gay language,

published and written by the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network, presented a survey

conducted in 2007 which showed that “three-quarters (73.6%) of LGBT students hear

homophobic language, such as ‘faggot’ or ‘dyke,’ and more than nine in ten (90.2%) hear the

word ‘gay’ used in a negative way frequently or often at school” (​ThinkB4YouSpeak ​4).

Although most children don’t mean to offend people of the LGBT community when using these

words casually, it’s often categorized as verbal harassment. Many children who identify as

LGBT who hear these words are often heavily impacted by it, resulting in “low self-esteem,

loneliness, depression, poor academic achievement and high rates of absenteeism”

(​ThinkB4YouSpeak 4​ ). All of this shows that at a young age, children are being negatively

impacted by their surroundings and convinced that their sexuality is immoral or bad in some

way.

Many different reasons explain why coming out can be so difficult. Some people

speculate that the rejection of same-sex couples originates from the Bible, while others believe

it’s rooted in early marital traditions. The CEO of Apple, Tim Cook, is quoted in a Vox video

titled “The new frontier of LGBTQ civil rights, explained,” which describes rights LGBT people

are still lacking and the different issues the community still faces. Cook says, “since these early

days, I have seen and I have experienced many other types of discrimination, and all of them

were rooted in the fear of people that were different than majority” (“The new frontier” 1:35). I

agree with what he says in the sense that discrimination is often directed toward those who may
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be considered different. Ellen Degeneres, a well-known LGBT activist, celebrated the

anniversary of her coming out on her talk show and uploaded it to Youtube, titling the video,

“Ellen Celebrates the 20th Anniversary of Her 'Coming Out' Episode.” The emotional montage

of video clips portrays the highlights of her coming out, as well as the downfalls. In the video, a

news reporter is shown expressing that “it is unfortunate that the sitcom Ellen portrayed their

homosexual lifestyle as normal and acknowledges their behavior” (“Ellen” 3:39). At the time,

many people had the same opinion as this reporter. Discontent with the LGBT community

publicizing their sexual preferences, many people voiced their unfavorable thoughts about the

situation, which ultimately discouraged the community further. I have had friends who have

struggled with coming out for many reasons, but the most common reason was the fear of being

rejected. Like Ellen Degeneres, many who have come out as LGBT have received backlash for

different reasons.

Just like other personal beliefs, some argue that homophobic roots primarily lie in

religion. A well known biblical verse that has been argued to misrepresent the sexual minorities

is, “You shall not lie with a male as with a woman; it is an abomination” (​Holy Bible​ Leviticus:

18:22). This belief that God disapproves of LGBT members resonates with the religious

community. In both the New and Old Testament, homosexuals are frowned upon. Thus, in

religious households and communities, expressing that you don’t identify as heterosexual can be

potentially life-damaging. In addition to religious rejection which has existed for thousands of

years, the idea that marriage is between a man and woman has been embedded in the minds of

humans since early ages. History has shown that heterosexual couples have been the norm since

the dawn of time; the first marriages were primarily held in order to bring a man and a woman
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together. Because of the desire to remain at the top of the economic chain, marriages were

important for bringing wealthy families together. It was never out of love, but still, people

believed it should be strictly between a man and a woman. However, same-sex couples are now

more common in society, but they’re still constantly looked down upon by homophobes and

individuals who aren’t ready for change, causing a sense of humility in the community. This

mental oppression is common among all LGBT members.

Fear of coming out as a homosexual is not the only oppression that the LGBT community

faces. In fact, not all LGBT oppression is mental; there are much heavier weighted issues at hand

when it comes to the government and LGBT rights. The government has placed many laws that

restrict what these gender and sexual minorities can and cannot do. Just a few decades ago, some

laws even restricted people from sharing their sexual preference if they wanted to be a citizen;

one could either identify as a homosexual or an American— never both. Shannon Minter, an

American civil rights attorney, wrote in a Cornell law journal titled “Sodomy and Public

Morality Offenses Under U.S. Immigration Law: Penalizing Lesbian and Gay Identity” which

describes how the government has punished those who identify as LGBT, that up “until 1990,

the United States was the only country in the world with an explicit policy of excluding visitors

and potential immigrants because of their sexual orientation” (Minter 771). This was done

through the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952, which controlled immigration into the

United States for an extended period of time. Only 38 years later, the Immigration Act of 1990

was introduced and then passed by George W. Bush. This act was supposed to be freeing and

was intended to assist many people in gaining citizenship within the U.S., however, it did not

turn out that way. Homosexuals were still highly discriminated against. It makes sense; how
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could one action change the minds of the opinionated homophobes who still maintained high

positions of power in the government? Changing laws but not changing those who enforce them

is almost unreasonable. Even after the law was passed, LGBT identifiers were still found being

“denied citizenship under the ‘good moral character’ requirement,” meaning that their sexual

preference deemed them immoral, thus they were not good enough to become citizens (Minter

772). It has taken decades for the United States to truly accept the LGBT community as citizens,

but citizenship does not necessarily come with freedom.

Despite now being legally allowed to live in the United States, the LGBT community has

only been given limited rights. What comes as a normal life to heterosexuals has been a constant

fight for those under the LGBT umbrella. Having a right to be a citizen, getting married, and

even adopting a child has been a battle. In a news article written in 2016 that covers the

legalization of gay couple adoptions in the United States, “Mississippi's ban on same-sex couples

adopting children [was declared] unconstitutional, making gay adoption legal in all 50 states”

(Reilly). The process of adoption was developed hundreds of years ago, yet homosexual couples

could only involve themselves three years ago. What differentiates a parent who is attracted to

the opposite sex from one who is not? Homophobia. In the Merriam-Webster dictionary,

homophobia is defined as an “irrational fear of, aversion to, or discrimination against

homosexuality​ or ​homosexuals​” (homophobia). There is no real difference because both couples

are capable of loving their children equally. The issue with same-sex couples adopting children

was controversial because people believed only married couples should be allowed to have

children, however, same-sex marriage was very hard to get approved. In a timeline detailing

critical moments during the fight for same-sex marriage, it is shown that nearly 45 years after it
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all began in May of 1970, the “Supreme Court ruled by a 5-to-4 vote on [June 26, 2015] that the

Constitution guarantees a right to same-sex marriage” (Gay Marriage). However, not all officials

abide by this rule. Although it can be combated in court, many homosexual marriages are still

denied by states, which not only is a violation of the Constitution but is also immoral. Along

with this, churches and pastors “both have significant protection under the First Amendment and

other provisions of law from being forced to perform same-sex marriages” (Weber). Because

church is separated from state in the United States, churches can refuse to carry out same-sex

marriages because it goes against their religion. Being denied a marriage makes it near

impossible to adopt a child in the United States. LGBT members are not only being denied

marriage and children, but a chance at living a fulfilled and happy life.

Although the position that the LGBT community stands in today is still faulty, many

argue that the sexual minorities are not oppressed anymore. They believe this because a lot has

been done to grant the LGBT community their natural rights. The government has worked with

the people, and the community now technically has rights to marriage in all 50 states and can

openly come out, but this does not mean they’re not oppressed. LGBT members still live in fear

and are not being granted the lives they deserve. In a CNN article titled “Orlando shooting: 49

killed, shooter pledged ISIS allegiance,” it was reported that on June 12, 2016, a U.S. born

citizen who had “pledged allegiance to ISIS gunned down 49 people early Sunday at a gay

nightclub in Orlando” (Fantz). This was an act done purely out of hatred toward those who

attended the nightclub… and it was only three years ago. Of course, this caused fear to spike in

the community and more people to keep their sexual interests in hiding. The LGBT community

is still oppressed to this day, and homophobia is still prominent in today's society.
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After Ellen Degeneres came out on national television, she shared with the public, “It was

hard. I lost everything and I got to be stripped down of everything, and start all over again— and

that was a wonderful gift: to be able to start all over again” (“Ellen” 4:22). Through prejudices

experienced in everyday life, as well as government placed laws and actions, the LGBT

community is heavily oppressed. Hopefully, with enough awareness, the battle for equality for

the LGBT community will come to an end, and everyone who struggled will be given the same

chance to start over again.

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Works Cited

“Ellen celebrates the 20th Anniversary of Her ‘Coming Out’ Episode”

​Youtube​, uploaded by TheEllenShow. 28 Apr 2017,

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1CsN6ZYgp2Y

Accessed 19 Oct. 2019.

Fantz, Ashley, et al. “49 Killed in Florida Nightclub Terror Attack.” ​CNN,​ 13 June 2016,

www.cnn.com/2016/06/12/us/orlando-nightclub-shooting/index.html​.

Accessed 19 Oct. 2019.

“Gay Marriage Timeline - Gay Marriage - ProCon.org.” ​Gay Marriage,​ 6 Oct. 2016,

gaymarriage.procon.org/gay-marriage-timeline

Accessed 19 Oct. 2019.

“homophobia.” ​Merriam-Webster.com.​ 2019.

https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/homophobia​.

Accessed 20 Oct. 2019.

Minter, Shannon "Sodomy and Public Morality Offenses under U.S. Immigration Law:

Penalizing Lesbian and Gay Identity," ​Cornell International Law Journal:​ Vol. 26: Iss.3,

Article 11.

​https://scholarship.law.cornell.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1329&context=cilj

Accessed 19 Oct. 2019.

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Perez, Ana. “Internalized Oppression: How It Affects Members of the LGBT Community.”

Diversity Factor​, vol. 13, no. 1, Jan. 2005, pp. 25–29. ​EBSCOhost,​

Accessed 19 Oct. 2019.

Reilly, Mollie. “Same-Sex Couples Can Now Adopt Children In All 50 States.” ​HuffPost

Australia,​ 1 Apr. 2016,

www.huffingtonpost.com.au/entry/mississippi-same-sex-adoption_n_56fdb1a3e4b083f5c

607567f?section=australia​.

Accessed 20 Oct. 2019.

The Holy Bible: King James Version​. Thunder Bay Press, 2000.

“The new frontier of LGBTQ civil rights, explained”​ Youtube, ​uploaded by Vox, 5 Sep 2015.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YCjDnX-Xzhg​.

Accessed 19 Oct. 2019.

ThinkB4YouSpeak Educator’s Guide​. Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network, 2008.

https://www.glsen.org/sites/default/files/Guide%20to%20ThinkB4YouSpeak.pdf

Accessed 20 Oct. 2019.

Weber, Travis. “Can Pastors and Churches Be Forced to Perform Same-Sex Marriages?” ​FRC​,

​www.frc.org/clergyprotected​.

Accessed 19 Oct. 2019.