HOMOSEXUALITY

GROUP MEMBERS

AYEHSA JAVED (15-BS-R-42)

SAMIA YOUNAS (15-BS-R-46)

SECTION: 4TH semester (A)

SUBMITTED TO: MISS FARZEEN AKRAM

DATED: MAY 3rd 2017

Abstract:

This article intends to deal with the issue of homosexuality, prevailing in the society for
centuries. It answers the questions related to morality and identity of homosexuals in context of
religion, the natural law and changing societal values. The reasons for homosexuality and its
outcomes are also discussed along with the rights that should be given to them. Furthermore, it
highlights the targeted class of homosexuals. The increasing number of homosexuals and their
supporters is also shown in the light of facts and figures. Solutions to deal with this issue are also
considered in the end.
Although the scientific and religious community, and even the homosexual themselves have
different opinions while defining the term “homosexuality”. Generally it is defined as the
tendency to be sexually attracted to member of one’s own gender. Different authors define
homosexuality in different ways. According to Mar Gwinn, it is "a feeling and a state of mind.
It's where most of your emotional, social and physical needs are met,"1 Lawrence J. Hatter
describes a homosexual person as "One who is motivated, in adult life, by a definite preferential
erotic attraction to members of the same sex…"2 Although it seems that homosexuality is a
modern day issue but actually it has its roots deepened in the history. For centuries, societies
have been witnessing it and dealing with this issue.

But what makes homosexuality an issue? There are many aspects that make it an issue but among
those aspects stands the nature of homosexuality. The nature of homosexuality is against the
natural law. That is natural law of God. It is against the way our societies have been formed. So,
it would not be wrong to say that homosexuality is abnormal since it weakens the society.

It is considered abnormal also for a purely mechanical reason i.e. misuse of one’s body parts.
The idea that homosexuality is the violation of nature’s law is also supported by scientists.
According to Gadpille:

“The view of cultural relativity seems to be without justification.

Cultural judgment is collective human caprice, and whether it
accepts or rejects homosexuality is irrelevant. Biological intent ...
is to differentiate male and female both physiologically and
psychologically in such a manner as to insure species survival,
which can be served only through heterosexual union”.3

1
Marry Ann Gwinn, I think I am Gay, (The Seattle Times, 25th November 1984), 1-9
2
Lawrence J. Hatter, Changing homosexuality in men, treating men troubled with homosexuality, (1970)
3
Michael Levin, Why homosexuality is abnormal, (Oxford University Press, April, 1984), 251-283
http://www.jstor.org/stable/27902859
But it is also a fact that it had been existed from centuries. In fact the term ‘homosexuality’ was
coined in the late 19th century by a German psychologist, Karoly Maria Benkert”.4 History
shows that homosexuality has been the part of every culture. There have always been people who
were engaged in such activities. In some societies, it was practiced in secret while in others it
was encouraged. In Ancient Greeks, homosexual relationship between an older man (probably
between his twenties or thirties), known as erastes5, and a boy known as the eromenos6, was
considered ideal. Likewise, Spartan warriors had homosexual relationship with male
companions. “In some New Guinea cultures, adolescent boys must engage in homosexual
relations with older boys, but are expected to lead strictly heterosexual relationships later in

life”7. However in the Western world it was treated as sinful.

The above statistics prove that somewhere in the world, homosexuality was okay and somewhere
it was considered a sin. Now the question arises that who and how decides that homosexuality
is a sin and is against morality? Morality is not only associated with religion, it involves other
aspects too. Morality is a system which describes the principles that govern our behavior in
regard to the standards of right and wrong. Now, who decides what is right and wrong? For
many the answer is the Creator, the religious commitment of a person and humanity. A society
where people do not believe in the Creator, consider homosexuality harmless and believes that
homosexuals should be given the same rights as heterosexuals. But for a society where moral
values are strongly interlinked with religion, it is considered a sinful act. So, different societies
treat it with different lenses. That is why still the issue of homosexuality is unsolved and is
creating conflicts among different societies.

There is no one answer to the question that is it moral or immoral. Because the answer solely
depends on how a person defines morality and immorality. In that case, different countries
should make different laws about homosexuality in accordance to their beliefs and this issue
should be resolved.

4
Dr. Brent Pickett, Homosexuality, (The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, 2015)
5
Adult male
6
Young male
7
Morton Hunt, Gay: What teenagers should know about homosexuality and the Aids Crisis, (Farrar Straus Giroux,
December 31st,1987) 244
But here the nature and laws of nature intervenes. Homosexuality is against the natural law. Its
state of nature makes it one of the biggest threats to the family system. But despite of these facts,
it is expanding day by day. During the earlier part of this century, homosexual behavior was kept
a secret but now things have changed. The establishment of homosexual communities, gay8 bars
and massive movements for the rights of homosexuals are a clear evidence of the fact that the
modern world is changing its perception towards homosexuality and is accepting it openly. The
following statistics show the diverse attitudes people from different religions and regions of the
world; have towards homosexuality.

Some countries of the world which includes Europe, Latin America, North America, Southeast
Asia and Australia think that homosexuality should be accepted but some countries which
includes Central Asian, Middle Eastern and African countries clings to homophobia.9 Most
positive views about homosexuality is in Europe, especially Spain (88 percent there say it should
be accepted by society), Germany (87 percent), and Czech Republic (80 percent). For the U.S.,
the number was 60 percent. Same-sex marriage is already legal in nine European nations, and
France has recently legalized it. Here one should remember the attitude of western society
towards family system without marriages. They promoted this culture in the same way they are
promoting gays and lesbian’s marriages. But now, after reaching the extremes, they are taking u-
turn. They are making new plans and providing psychological treatment to their natives. Because
having a family system without marriage proved to be dangerous for their society. Now, one can
decide from the above example that should homosexuality be promoted in our society.

There are also many countries that do not promote gay culture. Only 1 percent of Nigerians felt
homosexuality should be accepted. Russia and China are the clear outliers: (16 percent and 21
percent of people, respectively) who say homosexuality should be accepted by society. Majority
of the Muslim countries also dislike homosexuality and consider it a sinful act but there are some
countries that do not consider it a sinful act. In only three of the nearly 40 Muslim countries
surveyed, say that homosexuality is morally acceptable: Uganda (12%), Mozambique (11%) and

8
Male Homosexual
9
Prejudice against homosexual people
Bangladesh (10%). 10 In the United States, Muslim Americans are less accepting of
homosexuality than Americans as a whole: 47 percent of U.S. Muslims said it should be
discouraged and 45 percent said it should be accepted.11 Moreover the countries that allow death
penalty for homosexuality are Muslim majority nations. While Muslim nations such as Iran and
Saudi Arabia have legislated violent punishment for gays, there are no laws against
homosexuality in either Jordan or Lebanon. But the majority is against homosexuals.

A clear example is the attack at Orlando gay nightclub in which a Muslim man killed forty nine
people. But killing someone because of their sexual orientation is not justifiable and Islam does
not support such brutal acts. The verses stated below shows that Allah (SWT) Himself punishes
those who committed homosexuality.

Islam prohibits homosexual acts because it is against the order in which God created human
beings. Moreover, it destroys the family system and institution of marriage. In Islamic
terminology, homosexuality is alternatively called al-fahsha', or 'amal qawm Lut. The Quran
narrates that God destroyed the people of Lut as punishment of their behaviors which also
included homosexuality. As stated in the Quran, Lut said to his people:

“Will you commit lewdness such as no people in creation ever

committed before you? For you come in lust to men in preference
to women. No, you are indeed a people transgressing beyond
bounds”
[ CITATION Qur \l
12
1033 ]

In another verse, Lut advised them: 

10
Olga Khazan, The country that’s most accepting of homosexuality? Spain, (The Atlantic, June 4, 2013)
11
Changing attitudes on gay marriage, (Pew Research Centre, May 12th,2016)
12
Qur’an 7: 80-81
 “Of all the creatures in the world, will you approach males, and
leave those whom Allah has created for you to be your mates?
No, you are a people transgressing (all limits)!”
[ CITATION Qur1 \l
13
1033 ]

Likewise, Christianity also believes that homosexuality is sinful act by the order of God. But we
see that many western countries (which believe in God) now support homosexuality. One major
reason is the liberal view of the westerns that everyone has the right to live according to their
desires and changes in people’s values and preferences should be accepted. But it is clearly
stated in the bible that “God is the same yesterday, today, and forever; he does not go with the
flow”14. God says that homosexuality is unnatural because it falsifies what God has designed for
a marriage. Then what are the reasons that homosexuality is finding its way openly in the
modern society.

Global interactions, intercultural influences and rapid social developments are one of the major
reasons behind changing the course of homosexuality in the past few decades. All these changes
results in the development of liberalization which ultimately resulted in the rise of homosexual
communities. A case study on Taiwan reveals the results of above stated facts on a society with a
strong Chinese cultural heritage.

“There were no days in our Kingdom, only nights. As soon as the

sun comes up, our kingdom goes into hiding, for it is an unlawful
nation; we have no government and no constitution, we are neither
recognized nor respected by anyone.” 15

13
Qur’an 26: 165-166
14
Hebrew 13:8, Bible
15
Kenneth Pai Hsien-yung, Crystal Boys, (San Francisco, Gay sunshine press) 17
The above lines are the description of gay life in Taiwan in 1970’s by Bai Xianyong. And these
lines are in contrast with the announcement made by Taiwan’s president, Chen Shui-bian, in
2005 that gay marriage is going to be legalized. The course of homosexuality has gone through
dramatic change in Taiwan in just three decades. The reasons behind this change included
abnormal development of adolescents and socio-collective factors16. The increasing number of
homosexuals worldwide can be attributed the man’s nature, nurture, personal choice and the
environment.

With the growing trend of accepting homosexuality, a general perception has been built up in
past few decades that those who support homosexuality are liberals whereas those against it are
conservatives. Those from liberal school of thought treats homosexuality as an identity over
which no one has any choice and hence it is unchangeable. Initially it was considered that
homosexuality was caused by mental disorder and medical deficiency. But now it has been
proved that homosexuality is not a disease. The liberals believe that homosexuals are just as
normal as heterosexuals. But a belief is not enough to associate an identity to gays and lesbians
that is generally acceptable by all.

We live in a culture that is addicted to identity labels. However, the identity of homosexuals is
still not clearly defined. They do not hold a definite position in the society as heterosexual’s
posses because their attributes are against the attributes of nature.

A lot of assumptions have been made critical to identity of gays and lesbians. But it is still not
verifiable that should homosexuality be identified as self-concept, as childhood identity, as
sexual identity or as a distinct essence. It is also being discussed that either homosexuality is an
identity or just a behavior. The word homosexuality has several experiences related to it. It
could be due to feeling, behavior or just a way of life for a homosexual.

16
Dr. Jens Damm, same sex desire and society in Taiwan (The China Quarterly, March 2005) 67-81
http://www.jstor.org/stable/20192444
It is also a hot topic that what right should be given to homosexuals. Homosexual people are
continually struggling for their rights and now they have came in the main stream. They are
battling for civil rights for a long period of time in the assemblies and on the streets. Gay rights
movements have also been launched in many countries. They ask for the right of employment,
citizenship, education, protection, privacy, freedom of speech, marriage, etc.

In many countries, laws have been passed to protect the rights of homosexuals as demanded
above. They have been given the right of marriage and this is considered a negative step by many
people. They believe that gay marriages are a threat for the family system. We have been
discussing views of homophobic people since the beginning of this paper. Let us have a view of
how homosexuals defend their claim for right of marriage.

The following section summarizes the interview of a homosexual person. Jonathan Rauch
(Senior Writer, TheNational Journal) is an open gay and the author of the book “Gay Marriage:
Why It Is Good for Gays, Good for Straights, and Good for America”. The views of Jonathan on
the question that why same-sex marriage is good for America, were that just the way opposite-
sex marriage is good for America; same-sex marriage is also good for America. He added that
gay people need same safety as other people require. He positively reviewed that discrimination
from people was natural and justifiable. Because gay marriage is a big change and it will take
time to settle in the society. On giving his views on the general assumption that gay marriages
will hurt straight marriages, he said that gay marriages are very small in number and hence have
no impact on straight marriages17.

Some states have passed bills for their security and protection. But should they be given the right
of property, inheritance? Well there are no rules for it till now. However the other side of the
coin shows a different story. There are many countries that have passed bills and decided proper
punishment process for homosexuals. They have not been given the right of employment and
security.

17
An Argument for same-sex marriage: AN interview with Jonathan Rauch, (Pew Research Centre, April 24th, 2008)
Employment and educational rights are one of the biggest issues faced by homosexuals. A
research study shows that sixty-three percent of the heads of the sociology department reported
that hiring of homosexuals cause serious problem. Moreover, the finding showed that only two
departments out of 640 departments, offered full course on homosexuality.18

The position homosexuals hold in different societies has wide ranges. It is emerging almost in
every class (based on religion, age, race or gender). Among people who are religiously
unaffiliated, a solid majority have supported same-sex marriage since 2001. Roughly six-in-ten
Catholics (58%) now support same-sex marriage, as do nearly two-thirds of white mainline
Protestants (64%). Seven-in-ten Democrats favor same-sex marriage, as do 61% of independents.
A smaller share of Republicans favors same-sex marriage (33%), although they also have
become more supportive since 2001. Support for same-sex marriage now stands at 78% among
self-described liberals and 66% among moderates. Far fewer conservatives (29%) support same-
sex marriage. In 2001, roughly one-third of both whites and blacks expressed support for same-
sex marriage. Today, 57% of whites support same-sex marriage, as do 42% of blacks. Support
for same-sex marriage has risen among both men and women in recent years. Today, 58% of
women and 52% of men support same-sex marriage19

The above figure shows that homosexuality has no target class. It is found almost everywhere.

But it is also true that the oppression against them continues. Of the 202 countries in the world,
in only six countries, the law protects gay men and lesbians against discrimination. Being gay is
illegal in 74 of them. To be gay or lesbian in Cuba, for example, means you are likely to be sent
to jail. In Bangladesh and Bahrain the official view is that homosexuality does not exist. In
Pakistan homosexual behavior is illegal and is punished by anything from two years to life
imprisonment. In Saudi Arabia homosexual acts can be punished with the death penalty.

18
John Gagnon, Suzanne Keller, Ronald Lawson, Patricia Miller, William Stimon, Report of the American
Sociological Association task group on homosexuality (American Sociological Association, August 1982) 164-180
http://www.jstor.org/stable/27702513
19
Changing attitudes on gay marriages, (pew research centre, May 12th, 2016) URL:
http://pewforum.org/2016/05/12/changing-attitudes-on-gay-marriage/
In Australia anti-discrimination laws were passed in 1986 which affect employment, but
homosexual relationships are still discriminated against in the areas of immigration, adoption and
fostering20.

A worth mentioning point here is that homosexuals and their liberal supporters in defense of
their views give examples of transgender community. Although they are deprived of their basic
rights but the society as a whole believes they should be given their rights (whether it be any
religion or any cultural values). But it should be kept in mind that transgenders are created by
God. They do not possess attributes that are against law of nature. They are transgenders because
God created them that way. But being a homosexual is a matter of choice. So, there claim for
rights by showing relativity to transgenders in unjustifiable.

We have been discussing so far the do’s and don’ts society attaches with homosexuality and the
rights that are being demanded by homosexuals. Now, it’s time for the discussion of another
important point that is why we should know about homosexuality. The answer is the alarming
number to which homosexuals have reached in the past few decades. To deal with homosexuality
is not the only issue our society is facing. Since the identity of homosexuals is unknown, it is
quite difficult to point out them.

It is important to keep oneself aware about homosexuality as they could be very near to us. Your
child could also be a homosexual in future. Your friend may be a homosexual or even your
cousins. And since homosexuality is against the natural laws, we need to identify homosexuals
and try to make their preferences in accordance to the laws of nature.

The outcomes of homosexuality are also not very welcoming. A research found that
homosexuals as compared to heterosexuals were more frequently exposed to biological hazard.
They were found guilty for socially disruptive activities more frequently then heterosexuals.

So, from the point of view of individual health and social order, homosexuality could be
dangerous. Although heterosexuals are also involved in criminal activities to a large extent, but

20
Colin Spencer, Homosexuality: A History, (Forth Estate, September, 1995) 488
homosexuals are supposed to be dangerous because of their sexuality preferences. And since the
odd one stands out, they are highlighted differently as compared to heterosexuals.

We can try to stop homosexuality from expanding by strengthening anti-gay laws. The society
should stand as a whole to deal with problem and make the government listen to our voice.
Seminars on awareness of negative impacts of homosexuality can be helpful to make people
realize its negative consequences. It is not morally right to act against the existing homosexuals
but it is the need of the hour to stop it from expanding.

CONCLUSION:

The article intended to highlight the basics related to the term “homosexuality”. It is concluded
from the above detail that homosexuality is against natural laws and hence should be prevented
from prevailing in the society. However it is also true that almost every society has homosexuals.
For some it is moral and for others it is immoral depending on their views about morality. But
we found that religion is against it and prohibits from being involved in homosexuality. It was
also found that homosexuals do not have a target class. However, it enjoys more freedom in the

societies that are driven away from religion. The facts and figures showed that majority of the
new generation supports homosexuals more than the old ones. The liberals ask for their rights
and believe that it is natural. Many countries provide basic rights to homosexuals but there are
also countries which consider it sinful. The increased numbers of homosexuals is an alarming
situation and we should think of ways to stop it from prevailing. But it does not mean that gays
or lesbians should be deprived of societal identity unless they are not found guilty for any
lawless act. Ways should be find out to deal with homosexuality but by keeping in view the
basic rights of existing homosexuals.
REFERENCES:
Books:
spencer, c. (1995). homosexuality: a history.

In P. H.-y. Xianyong, crystal boys (p. p.17). San Francisco: Gay sunshine press (originally published by
Niezi).

Articles:

An Argument For Same-Sex Marriage: An Interview with Jonathan Rauch. (n.d.). Retrieved from pew
research centre: http://www.pewforum.org/2008/04/24/an-argument-for-same-sex-marriage-an-
interview-with-jonathan-rauch/

Changing Attitudes on Gay Marriages. (2016, may 12). Retrieved from Pew Research centre:
http://www.pewforum.org/2016/05/12/changing-attitudes-on-gay-marriage/

Damm, J. (2005). Same Sex Desire and Society in Taiwan 1970-1987. Retrieved from jstor:
http://www.jstor.org/stable/20192444

Hatter, L. J. (1970). Changing homosexuality in the male;: Treatment for men troubled by homosexuality.
McGraw-Hill.

Hunt, M. G. (1987). What teenagers should know about Homosexuality and the AIDS Crisis.

John Gagnon, S. K. (n.d.). report of the american sociological assosciation task group on homosexuality.
Retrieved from jstor: http://www.jstor.org/stable/27702513

Pickett, B. (2015). Homosexuality. Retrieved from The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy:

<https://plato.stanford.edu/archives/fall2015/entries/homosexuality/>

Qurán.

Qurán.

Schwartzman, J. f. (n.d.). on homodexuality. Retrieved from http://www.jstor.org/stable/3957850

spencer, c. (1995). homosexuality: a history.

In P. H.-y. Xianyong, crystal boys (p. p.17). San Francisco: Gay sunshine press (originally published by
Niezi).

On Homosexuality Author(s): John F. Leahy and Lewis Schwartzman Source: Science News, Vol. 103,
No. 19 (May 12, 1973), p. 303 Published by: Society for Science & the Public Stable URL:
http://www.jstor.org/stable/3957850
“WHY HOMOSEXUALITY IS ABNORMAL” by Michael Levin Source: The Monist, Vol. 67,
No. 2, Sociobiology and Philosophy (APRIL, 1984), pp. 251-283 Published by: Oxford
University Press Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/27902859