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TPSP
12 December 2014
LGBT Discrimination in American Society
According to a recent TIME Magazine poll, seventy percent of Americans feel they “live in a gay-friendly community” (14). Yet America’s LGBT community would argue that America is anything but that. Although the LGBT community has made huge strides towards achieving equality in the last decade, it still faces many obstacles from various laws regarding, and cultural attitudes towards, LGBT people. Many societal institutions ingrained in American culture play large roles in LGBT discrimination, perpetuating social, medical and legal inequities in LGBT individuals.
1.Language and Terminology
As the experiences of LGBT people are becoming increasingly documented in media and literature, the language and terminology used to refer to LGBT people and their experiences is evolving. Therefore, it is necessary to define terminology that will be used in this paper. For the purpose of this paper, the term LGBT will refer to individuals who identify with diverse sexual orientation and gender categories. People who are gay or lesbian are attracted to people with the same gender as theirs; lesbians are attracted to women, and gay men are attracted to men. People who are bisexual are attracted to two genders, typically females and males. Heterosexual people are attracted to people with a gender different from their own. Transgender people have gender identities which differ from the social expectations associated with the gender and physical sex they were assigned at birth. Cisgender people conform to expectations of society based on the gender and physical sex they were assigned at birth (Gender Equity Resource Center).
LGBT discrimination in America is not only found in individual attitudes towards the LGBT community, but also in societal attitudes towards sexual and gender diversity. Common experiences include gay and lesbian people facing homophobia, which describes individuals’ negative attitudes towards gay and lesbian people and culture (Herek, “Definitions”), bisexual people experiencing biphobia, which describes individuals’ negative attitudes towards bisexual people and culture, and transgender people experiencing transphobia, which describes “[f]ear or hatred of transgender people” (Gender Equity Resource Center). And LGBT people experience discrimination on an institutional level as well as an interpersonal one through heterosexism, which describes societal attitudes towards all LGBT people and the institutions of society which discriminate against them (Herek, “Definitions”).
2.History of Stigma
LGBT individuals have historically been stigmatized for having a sexual orientation or gender identity different from what is expected by society. Americans considered homosexuality to be a mental illness for much of the twentieth century; the American Psychiatric Association included it in its first Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders. The Association based its inclusion of the term in its Manual on both the religious and cultural values of the time and its members’ treatment of LGBT patients, but did not take healthy LGBT people into consideration with its inclusion. The Association removed the term from the Manual in 1973 after increasing societal pressures and published studies argued that homosexuality was not an illness (Herek, “Homosexuality” 3-4). Similarly, the Association included the term gender identity disorder in its Manual to refer to transgender individuals’ presumed mental illness until 2013, when it replaced the term with gender dysphoria in an attempt to remove the stigma traditionally associated with transgender people while preserving the treatment options available to them (Amer. Psychiatric Assn. 1-2). Yet even though the Association’s views on LGBT people have evolved, societal views on them have largely stayed constant throughout American history.
Twentieth-century American culture perpetuated the stigmatization of LGBT people. Judeo-Christian religions traditionally discouraged same-gender relationships, citing verses that say “l[ying] down with a male, as with a woman...is an abomination” (The Complete Tanach,
Lev. 18.22) and that “abusers of themselves with mankind...shall [not] inherit the kingdom of God” (King James Bible Online, 1 Cor. 9-10). Transgender experiences were also historically discouraged in Judaism and Christianity; a woman who wore “[a] man’s attire…[and] a man
[who wore] a women’s garment [were both considered] an abomination to the Lord” (The Complete Tanach, Deut. 23.1).
In addition, for much of the twentieth century, no laws existed in America at all that protected against discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity, nor did any laws exist offering LGBT people the same chance of success as heterosexual, cisgender people had
(Herek, “Homosexuality” 5). The inclusions of both homosexuality and gender identity disorder in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders also influenced stigma against
LGBT people by suggesting that LGBT people had a disease which needed to — and could be — cured. Some still believe that LGB people can be cured of their same-gender attractions and actively try to do so. However, such attempts to change sexual orientation are largely seen as ineffective, unethical, and even harmful today (4). While the stigmatization of LGBT people is primarily manifested in attitudes that are generally waning among the American public (Pew Research Center), it continues to permeate many aspects of American culture, workplace and law.
3.Interpersonal and Cultural Discrimination
Stigmatization, stereotypes, and misconceptions of LGBT people often lead to discrimination against them. LGB people “have [historically] been regarded as abnormal and deviant, and have accordingly been stigmatized as sinners, criminals, and psychopaths” (Herek, “Why Tell If You’re Not Asked?” 5). Their relationships are generally viewed in terms of sexual behaviors, as opposed to heterosexual relationships, which are generally viewed in terms of social behaviors (4). Stigmatization can occur against LGBT people when making their sexual orientation or gender identity public, or “coming out of the closet” (1), because American society assumes everyone to be heterosexual until proven homosexual, and cisgender until proven transgender. This perception that being heterosexual and cisgender are inherently “normal” often provokes a negative backlash against anyone who comes out as LGBT, giving straight, cisgender people an unspoken advantage against LGBT people. The negative backlash is so great that LGBT people often go through a stage of denial of their sexual orientation or gender identity before accepting it as part of who they are.
The stigma surrounding the LGBT community is also often seen in microaggressions used against them, which can lead to further discrimination. Microaggressions are “brief, commonplace, and daily verbal, behavioral, and environmental slights and indignities directed toward specific groups of people” (Platt and Lenzen 1012). LGBT people experience a wide variety of microaggressions in their everyday lives. LGB people encounter microaggressions when their relationships are viewed only in a sexual, rather than social, context, when their sexual orientation is thought to be contagious, when they are referred to with “language that reflects a heteronormative value system” (1013), when they are considered “sinful and worthy of punishment” because of their sexual orientation, or when they are assumed to be abnormal,
“need therapy or are told that they are going through a phase” (1014) because of their sexual orientation. Transgender people experience microaggressions when they are referred to with incorrect gender pronouns (Nadal, Skolnik and Wong 64), assumed to act a certain way because of their original physical sex (65, 67), objectified (66), thought of as mentally ill or sexually immoral, or harassed (68). And all LGBT people face microaggressions when they are referred to with language that presumes heterosexual, cisgender people to be normal (Nadal, Skolnik and Wong 67; Platt and Lenzen1018, 1022-1023), minimized by others (Nadal, Skolnik and Wong 66; Platt and Lenzen 1024), or when people who commit microaggressions against them deny having committed them (Nadal, Skolnik and Wong 67; Platt and Lenzen 1014).
However, the most prevalentmicroaggressions committed against LGBT people are systemic, whether they involve familial or societal systems. Families can discriminate against
LGBT people when they respond with hostility to news of their LGBT family member’s sexual orientation or gender identity (Nadal, Skolnik and Wong 70). The microaggressions of societal systems -- laws, policies, and institutions -- are perhaps the most harmful microaggressions
LGBT people can experience, since they occur in a variety of ways and are difficult to avoid. Many laws affecting LGBT people were made with understandings of sexual orientation and gender identity far removed from current conceptions of those topics. Transgender people, for example, often mention experiencing systemic microaggressions when using public restrooms, interacting with police officers and prisoners, receiving physical and mental health care, and attempting to change their legal documents to reflect their gender identity (71).
Certain characteristics correlate with people who are more likely to commit microaggressions against LGBT people, as well as with people who are more likely to hold homophobic, biphobic, or transphobic attitudes. Those who hold such attitudes against LGBT people are less likely to know LGBT people and more likely to be politically, religiously, and morally conservative, be less well-educated (Herek, “Correlates”), and live in socially conservative areas (Gates and Newport), especially the South (Pew Research Center). People who do not hold such attitudes, by contrast, are more likely to know LGBT people (Herek, “Correlates”). Heteronormativity, or societal tendencies to assume all are heterosexual and categorize gender and sexuality into diametrically opposite divisions (Gray), also contributes to discrimination against LGBT people. And while LGBT people generally experience their sexuality and gender identity as being “deeply-rooted and unchangeable,” their stigmatization makes them less likely to act on their same-gender attractions or feelings of being transgender
(Herek, “Homosexuality” 1) than if they were to act on heterosexual attractions or feelings of being cisgender.
While societal marginalization plays a role in LGBT discrimination, some individuals influenced by their religious beliefs also contribute to stigma. Some argue that their religious beliefs take precedence over their potential acceptance of LGBT people or LGBT rights. Laws have been proposed in various states allowing “businesses...to refuse service to gays, lesbians, and same-sex couples” if providing such service would violate those business owners’ religious beliefs (“Religious Freedom”). Conservative culture generally considers LGBT people immoral on the basis of their sexual orientation or gender identity. Gates and Newport theorize that there could be a correlation between the proportion of LGBT people who live in a region and that region’s “acceptance of...LGBT individuals,” making LGBT people less likely to live in conservative regions where they might be more frequently or overtly discriminated against, but admit that this is difficult to ascertain because of the “complex social and cultural patterns” involved. Conservative culture is also more likely to endorse traditional religious beliefs discouraging LGBT rights (Herek, “Correlates”). For example, some Christians who discourage
LGBT rights base their opposition on what they see as supporters’ misinterpretation of the Bible. They say that Christians are bound to the laws and teachings of the New Testament, which some interpret as condemning homosexuality as a sin, and interpret the Bible more strictly and traditionally on the whole than Christian supporters of LGBT equality. Supporters, by contrast, feel that the teachings of the Bible must be interpreted with the changing of the times, arguing that both restrictions against and punishments for being LGBT were needed in the societies of both the Old and New Testaments, but are now out of date. Indeed, some support LGBT rights regardless of their religious beliefs, and contend that their support can be reconciled with their religious observance (Mohler and Vines). A growing number of Americans feel similarly and support LGBT rights (Pew Research Center), but American culture’s heteronormativity also perpetuates LGBT discrimination (Gray). The tendency of American culture to discriminate against LGBT people, whether consciously or unconsciously, and whether by social, societal, religious, or political means, is also reflected in American laws, which discriminate against
LGBT people in many ways.
4.Legal and Societal Discrimination
American laws discriminate against LGBT people in a variety of settings. Many LGBT people are discriminated against in the workplace. The Williams Institute reports that fifteen to forty-three percent of LGBT workers have been discriminated against on the job, losing their jobs, receiving negative performance evaluations, or being verbally or physically abused on the basis of their sexual orientation or gender identity. Twelve to thirty percent of heterosexual, presumably cisgender workers witnessed such discrimination in the workplace (Burns and Krehely 1-2). In addition, a study conducted by the National Center for Transgender Equality and National Gay and Lesbian Task Force (now the National LGBTQ Task Force) shows that ninety percent of transgender workers have been harassed or mistreated, and forty-seven percent fired, not hired, or denied job promotions, because of their gender identity. In addition, more than half of transgender Americans are unemployed (3). On the whole, as much as sixty-eight percent of LGBT people have experienced workplace discrimination (Amer. Psychological Assn.). Many try to avoid such discrimination by hiding their sexual orientation or gender identity or delaying their gender-affirming transition in the workplace, further impacting their mental and physical health. LGBT people are also discriminated against in the workplace by the gap between their wages and the wages of heterosexual, cisgender workers. Gay and bisexual men earn ten to thirty-two percent less than straight men; lesbian and bisexual women earn less on the whole than gay, straight, or bisexual men. Transgender people also experience significant wage gaps (Burns). Workplace discrimination against LGBT people is likely to continue. Although public support for workplace protections against discrimination for LGBT workers is increasing, LGBT workers can still be legally fired because of their sexual orientation or gender identity. No federal law exists offering full protection against discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity, and statelaws vary widely in the protections they offer against LGBT workplace discrimination (see Figure 1).
LGBT people also frequently experience housing discrimination. The National Center for
Transgender Equality and National Gay and Lesbian Task Force report that nineteen percent of transgender people have been refused a place of residence, eleven percent have been evicted, and nineteen percent have been homeless. When trying to enter homeless shelters, the majority have been harassed, and some turned away or even sexually assaulted, by shelter staff or residents.
The homelessness rate of transgender people is twice that of the homelessness rate of the general population (4). State protections against LGBT housing discrimination vary widely; eighteen states have laws protecting against such discrimination based on both sexual orientation and
Figure 1. LGBT workplace discrimination laws by state. Amer. Civil Liberties Union. gender identity, but three only protect against LGB housing discrimination. Twenty-nine states have no protections against housing discrimination at all (Movement Advancement Project).
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Discrimination is also evident in America’s military. While LGB people have been able to serve openly since the repeal of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” in 2011, transgender people are still banned from serving openly. The policy against transgender military service was enacted when gender nonconformity was considered a mental illness, and labels transgender people as “sexual deviants” (Londoño). The latest revision of the American Psychiatric Association’s Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders says “gender nonconformity is not in itself a mental disorder” (1). Yet the Department of Defense says it has no plans to revise its policy to reflect the Manual, despite increasingly vocal support from transgender service members who often join the army to delay the gender affirming transition process, and medical experts who say the policy is unreasonable (Londoño).
While LGB people can serve openly in the American military, they still experience widespread discrimination in their lack of access to marriage rights, which vary widely from state to state. Thirty-four states have legalized same-sex marriage, three have received rulings from appeals courts striking down bans against same-sex marriage, which could soon cause same-sex marriage to be legalized in those states, and six allow same-sex couples to form civil unions or domestic partnerships. Sixty-four percent of LGBT Americans live in a state that allows them to marry. But one state only recognizes same-sex marriages conducted outside its borders, and fourteen states provide no marriage, civil union, or domestic partnership recognition for same-sex couples at all (Movement Advancement Project). However, the American public is increasingly supporting same-sex marriage, with fifty-one percent in favor of its legalization. One American out of every seven has changed their views on same-sex marriage; most cite having a personal connection to a gay man or lesbian as the impetus behind their change, while other reasons for their change in opinion include becoming more tolerant of LGB people, changing public opinion, and a belief in the freedom of people to choose who they marry (Pew Research Center). By contrast, Americans who have grown to oppose legalizing same-sex marriage say they feel that way because of their religious views, living in a politically conservative area, or personal conviction of its immorality (Pew Research Center for the People and the Press). Others oppose the legalization of same-sex marriage because of more utilitarian views. Conservative Texas politicians support the state’s ban on same-sex marriage out of fears and misconceptions that repealing the ban would discourage couples from having children and, in a clear example of the stigma that remains pervasive against LGBT people, eventually cause state bans on pedophilia and similar actions to be repealed (McGaughy). Marriage recognition, of course, provides LGB couples with a slew of benefits which heterosexual couples have always had access to (Quintana 3-4), but LGB couples only receive those benefits in states that have legalized same-sex marriage.