Rights of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) People

Research Report for KTJMUN

Hyun Seok Lee

History of LGBT
Ancient to pre-modern history The rights and treatment of lesbians, gays, bisexual and transgender people, commonly referred in short form as LGBT, is a controversial topic which has been in debate over thousands of years, despite the recent history of the term LGBT. Even the word homosexuality was not coined until the late 19th century. However, the debate on their rights continues till today, with no evident end in sight. Note: from here onward until Modern History and Debate, LGBT will be referred as homosexuality, as there is no historical evidences of the existence of such, or similar, categorization. To begin, one must look at the history of homosexuality. Tracing the history of homosexuality shows that mankind has always had such individuals, with historical evidences showing evidences of homosexuality from 10,000 BC[1], far before the term homosexuality was even designated as such. Nonetheless, there are no other substantial depictions or records of homosexuality until Ancient Greece, where homosexuality as regarded as a normality, co-existing with heterosexual lifestyles, where married men may have a male partner alongside his female wife, as discussed in the Greek philosopher Plato's Symposium . This relatively friendly outlook on the homosexual community continues until the publication of Plato's Laws, in which he takes a much harsher view of homosexuality, calling it unnatural; thus ending the positive treatment of homosexuals[2] and sparking a general negative view of homosexuality. As the Greeks crumbled and the Romans became an Empire, the general view on homosexuality was being further degraded, even before the conversion of religion to Christianity[2]. Ancient Rome, eventually, became the first formal nation to create a law concerning homosexuality, condemning such behaviors as being equivalent to a criminal act[3]. The law, titled Lex Scantinia, became the groundwork for future refinement and stricter regulations in the Roman Empire, although there are many historical events within Rome that shows defiance, and in some cases, downright support for homosexuality, such as the marriage of Emperor Nero to two men in legal ceremonies, and the pacification of Emperor Trajan through a young boy. One can easily see how extremely the views on homosexuality varied and contrasted amongst people. Fast-forward to the establishment of Christianity as a major religion and mankind gets its first legal stature outright banning and persecuting homosexuality, rather than just condemnation of such behaviour by the newly converted the Christian Roman Empire[4]. Open persecution of homosexuals begins, where those found guilty are burned alive in public as punishment for their evil sins. However, not unlike the modern society, the Christian emperors of Rome continued to collect taxes on male homosexual prostitutes, despite the statute. This condemnation of homosexuality continues as Christianity and its ideals spread, leading to even harsher laws, such as the Buggery Act of 1533 by King Henry VIII, where those accused of sodomy (buggery) was executed, as being viewed as having committed an unnatural sexual act against the will of God and men[5]. The creation and enforcement of various anti-homosexual laws carries on until the latter half of the 17th century, when renowned social reformer Jeremy Bentham argues for the decriminalization of sodomy in England in his essay Offences Against One's Self in 1785[6]. Revolutionary France becomes the first Hyun Seok Lee

country to decriminalize sodomy under its new penal code in1791, which is soon followed by Prussia, Netherlands, Indonesia and Brazil in the early 19th century. Great Britain, although it does not remove the death penalty for sodomy until 1861, has its last recorded execution for homosexuality in 1846[7]. However, despite this large shift to less harsh punishments for homosexuals, Russia imposes its new penal code, under which homosexuals are punishable for up to 5 years of exile in Siberia in 1832 under Article 995 of its new criminal code. Then in 1869, the term homosexuality is published for the first time in a pamphlet written by Karl-Maria Kertbeny. An important thing to note, however, is that despite the apparent improvements for the rights and treatment of homosexuality, there was still a general disregard for such behaviour, and that although homosexuality was decriminalized, it was not yet legalized. Modern History and Debate The 20th century was a period of time which can be described as being tumultuous at best. Between the two World Wars, the onset and the climax of the Cold War, and social movements for coloured people, the LGBT movement is often viewed as having been insignificant, and is quite forgotten in the general public and historical publications. However, 20th century is the turning point for the LGBT community, as explained below. In the early 20th century, massive reforms and revolutions swept through Europe. As those with historical backgrounds would be aware of, a large amount of European governments shift from being a monarchy based system to a more Republican or Socialist government, abolishing or lessening the effect of many existing anti-homosexual laws. The harsh Russian law see above for the Russian penal code is repealed and removed completely by 1922 by the Bolshevik leaders and the newly founded Union government of Russia[8]. The Weimer Republic would go on to establish Institut fr Sexualwissenschaft (Institute of Sex Research), acting as a conservative support for homosexual rights, and carrying out research on such behaviors, whilst providing various services such as homosexual marriage counseling, being the first of its kind in the world[9]. Social outlook on homosexuality changes as well, and the citizens of the Weimer Republic see the first explicitly homosexual film[10]. An attempt to make lesbianism in Britain fails, showing vast difference of social opinion from just a couple of decades ago. Across the ocean in the United States, homosexuals fared less well compared to their European counterparts. In 1920, the prestigious Harvard University had expelled several students related to homosexuality, after the formation of and investigation by an ad-hoc committee[11]. The first LGBT rights organization in the United States, The Society for Human Rights, was formed in 1924, but it didn't last long, being shut down within just a few months when its founder and leader Henry Gerber was arrested on basis of wrongdoings and misleading. Homosexuality took a drastic turn with the rise of the Nazi Party, specifically with the appointment of Adolf Hitler as Chancellor of Germany and the conversion of the Weimer Republic into a country led by a totalitarian government. Under the Nazi ideology, Germans homosexuals lost their relatively high level of freedom, which was regarded as having been higher than anywhere else in the world pre-Nazism. Beginning in 1933, gay organizations were banned, and mass persecution of homosexuals began, using brutal methods, involving the imprisonment of arrested homosexuals
Burning of books considerd unGerman in Berlin

Hyun Seok Lee

and the eventual usage of concentration camps as well as burning any records of any documents endorsing gays and homosexuals, including the library at Institut fr Sexualwissenschaft[12]. As the Holocaust came into full effect in late 1930s and early 1940, it is estimated that about 5,000 to 15,000 men were sent to concentration camps, with a large percentage of them dying before the end of the reign of the Nazi Party. The gay prisoners were forced to wear the pink triangle, clearly identifying them as homosexual men, and many received cruel treatment from not just the German soldiers but also from other inmates at prisons and concentration camps, and many were beaten to death by other prisoners[13]. As the war drew to a close, and stability began to return, Europeans continued to vastly improve on the rights and respect of homosexuals. Iceland, Switzerland and Sweden followed its neighbors and decriminalized homosexuality. Over the two decades. the LGBT community would continue to flourish, forming countless organizations, with the oldest being forms in Netherlands called Cultuur en Ontspanningscentrum (COC) in 1946, an organization which continues till today. In the 1960s and 70s, various countries around the world begin to decriminalize homosexuality: Greece in 1951, Thailand in 1956, followed by various states in the US in the 1960s. So far, there has only been decriminalization of homosexuality, but not full legalization. On June 28th, 1969, the Stonewell riots occur, sparking the gay rights movement into full swing. The patrons of Stonewall Inn fought back against the New York City police, leaving behind a legacy and influencing future demonstrations and demands for LGBT rights[14]. By 1970, the LGBT community has reached a noticeable and prominent position in society. 1970 sees the first Gay Liberation Day March in New York and the first Gay Pride Parade in Los Angeles, both of which, are still being held annually. Transsexuals also improve in terms of their rights, with Sweden legally granting the conversion of sexes, and providing free hormone therapy to those requesting for it. As a new decade was ushered in, the LGBT appeared to be unstoppable. The European Court of Human Rights rules in favour of Jeffrey Dudgeon, a gay activist who was interrogated by the government of Northern Ireland, in the famous case of Dudgeon v the United Kingdom[15]. This case would prove to be an example for future trials across the world, when the rights of gay people are questioned. Another significant event is the legalization of registered partnership of same-sex couples in Denmark, the first of its kind, with almost equal rights as those as marriage, sans rights to adoption in 1989. 1990 would prove to be a challenging decade for the LGBT community. Early '90s suggests a promising start to the decade, as more and more countries decriminalize and legalize same-sex partnerships around the world. However, there are small catches to all these improvements, with many of them becoming controversial topics which would last into the 21st century. The Defense of Marriage Act is passed and put into legislature, effectively banning all same-sex marriage in the United States and its territories by defining marriage as a legal union between one man and one woman[16], being enacted on September 21, 1996. This would raise issues which are still being debated and tried, even under the Obama administration and the new congressional body. 1993 sees the enforcement of ban on gays serving openly in the US military, which would later go on to spark one of the infamous cover-ups and controversy in the US military, later being known as the Don't ask, don't tell policy. Early 21st century would become the defining era for the LGBT community. Most notably, the US Hyun Seok Lee

states of Arkansas, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Virginia, Wisconsin, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Oregon and Utah would ban same-sex marriages, with the first 10 going onto banning civil-unions in 2004. Despite the loss of rights to marriage within continental United States, LGBT people would nonetheless continue to gather support overseas, at least in terms of legalization. Many would gain the right to adopt children, in countries such as Canada, Sweden and Spain.

Topics and Debate Points

Below are several key ideas and information delegates should be aware of. Despite improvements in legalization, same sex marriage is still banned in many countries, and even those with legal allowances do not permit adoption Homophobia has increased especially in the 21st century, with many, especially the younger LGBT people, being shunned from and ridiculed by society There is no single global organization promoting the rights of LGBT, and their rights appear contradictory to some of the UN There has been a proposal made to the UN General Assembly, suggesting a massive reform to the current treatment of the LGBT community[17] which, to date, has neither been passed nor failed There was a vote in November 2010 to remove the phrase sexual orientation and putting in place discriminatory reasons on any basis, changing the main topic of the resolution It is a sensitive matter, even amongst the LGBT community Some dislike the fact that Transgender is included in the term LGBT, as lesbians, gays and bisexuals have a difference in sexual-orientation, not gender-confusion Some do not believe that adoption is correct, although majority do believe that marriage should be fully legalized Possible Solutions It is highly difficult to come up with a solution that would appease both those for and against LGBT rights. Important points of opposing views: Almost all major religions Christianity, Muslim and Judaism along with several others do not support homosexual behaviors The majority of the world's population is, heterosexual, and many have negative opinions on the LGBT community Topics such as the right to adopt are difficult to address, as some argue it is against the rights of the child to have a normal upbringing A large portion of the LGBT community are not open about their orientation, and refuse to participate in discussions in regard to their rights LGBT behavior is still considered as being unnatural in many culture, regardless of religion As mentioned before, transgender/sexuals are considered to be a completely different topic by many people, and their leaders There are simply too many opposing views, not just within different groups of people, but between nations, which limit any possibilities of reaching a solution, such as the Arab nations openly opposing any pro-LGBT solutions to date Hyun Seok Lee

References
[1] [2] [3] [4] http://www.britarch.ac.uk/ba/ba15/BA15FEAT.HTML http://plato.stanford.edu/entries/homosexuality/#NatLaw http://hnn.us/articles/21319.html
(Theodosian Code 9.7.6): All persons who have the shameful custom of condemning a man's body, acting the part of a woman's to the sufferance of alien sex (for they appear not to be different from women), shall expiate a crime of this kind in avenging flames in the sight of the people.

[5] [6] [7] [8] [9] [10] [11] [12] [13] [14] [15] [16] [17] [18]

http://rictornorton.co.uk/homopho5.htm http://www.columbia.edu/cu/lweb/eresources/exhibitions/sw25/bentham/index.html http://books.google.com/books? id=Xu89AAAAIAAJ&pg=PA79&lpg=PA79&dq=The+last+known+execution+for+bugge ry&hl=en#v=onepage&q&f=false http://community.middlebury.edu/~moss/RGC2.html http://www.hirschfeld.in-berlin.de/aus_inst_en.html http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0009878/ http://www.boston.com/news/education/higher/articles/2005/11/27/a_shameful_episode_in _harvard_history/ http://www.ushmm.org/museum/exhibit/online/hsx/ http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/Holocaust/gaycomp.html http://news.google.com/newspapers? id=uuwjAAAAIBAJ&sjid=K4wDAAAAIBAJ&pg=6710,4693&dq=stonewall+inn&hl=e n http://cmiskp.echr.coe.int/tkp197/view.asp? action=html&documentId=695350&portal=hbkm&source=externalbydocnumber&table= F69A27FD8FB86142BF01C1166DEA398649 http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/PLAW-104publ199/content-detail.html http://en.wikisource.org/wiki/UN_declaration_on_sexual_orientation_and_gender_identity

Hyun Seok Lee