Are lesbians more accepted by society than are gay
men?
Resources used to support "no."
Discrimination, hate crimes, and general prejudicial attitudes
against homosexuals are prevalent in our society. It seem as
though society may be more accepting of lesbians than they are of
gay males, but there is no evidence for this assumption. In fact,
there is evidence that lesbians are discriminated against by the
American public just as are gay men. For example, lesbians receive
less health care than heterosexual women, presumably due to the
biased attitudes of physicians toward homosexual. These women
often feel degraded and looked down upon by the people that they
should be trusting the most - their own physicians. [Kimberly
Spitz]
WWW
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Top Five Reasons to Disapprove of Homosexuality
This interesting article discusses five reasons why
people hates gays: homosexuality is a sin and homosexual acts are
unnatural, nonreproductive, socially harmful and disgusting.
Contradictory passages from the Bible are included in the
arguments. [Recommended by Kimberly Spitz.]
- Gays,
Lesbians, and the Law
This is a very interesting discussion of current
discrimination toward homosexuals in Canada. It discusses traumatic
experiences of lesbians and gays.[Recommended by Kimberly
Spitz.]
- The Effect of Bias on Lesbian Healthcare
This is an article about discrimination toward lesbians
within the healthcare industry. Lesbians do not receive healthcare
with the same high standards as do heterosexual females. Doctors
that do not approve of homosexuality make this clear to their
lesbian clients, which discourages them from returning for
necessary follow-up visits. For this and other reasons, the heal
of lesbians has decreased in recent years. [Recommended by
Kimberly Spitz.]
Journal Articles
- Pratte, Trish. 1992. "A comparative study of attitudes toward
homosexuality: 1986 and 1991." Journal of Homosexuality,
26:77-83.
This study compares attitudes toward homosexuality in
1986 with the attitudes of people in 1991. It shows that in 1986,
people share a greater negative attitude toward homosexuals, with
men expressing more negative attitudes than women. This was
thought to be due to the prevalence of AIDS as a topic in the
media. This negativity has declined over the time period covered
in the study. The survey founds the most negative attitudes were
by people that are rural, Caucasian, male, non-students, and from
the midwest. It was suggested that the more socialized and
education a person is, the less biased his/her attitudes will be
toward homosexuals. [Recommended by Kimberly
Spitz.]
- Simon, Angela. 1995. "Some correlates of individuals'
attitudes toward lesbians." Journal of Homosexuality,
29(1):89-102
The results of an attitudes survey of university
undergraduates showed that women were more open toward lesbians
than were men. Since women are more likely than men to have
lesbians as friends or acquaintances, it is thought that this
contact leads to greater acceptance. [Recommended by Kimberly
Spitz.]
