PERCEPTION OF THE HOMOSEXUAL COMMUNITY

Cultural Emersion and Perception of the Homosexual Community

Robert M. Chadwick
University of Kentucky CIS 110

PERCEPTION OF THE HOMOSEXUAL COMMUNITY

ABSTRACT
In this paper the topic of the homosexual community is the focus. More specifically
the perception of the community by dominates culture, and also my own perception and
preconceived notions of the community. Through the process of familiarizing myself with
the community through interviews and research one can really open up their mind and
possibly change their views. With just a small amount of research into the homosexual
community I was able to alter my views and judgments on the community.

PERCEPTION OF THE HOMOSEXUAL COMMUNITY

Today we live in a vastly different society than that of out parents, and even more so
than that of our grandparents. Popular culture and media are ever changing and have a large
influence on what the youth and the dominant culture view or deem as the norm or
acceptable. Some communities are ostracized and some are deemed popular or cool. Along
with the popular culture many factors effect and individuals views upon cultures or
communities that are not their own. I have been raised in a conservative, white, military
family. Being raised in this environment has obviously influenced my identity and the
preconceived notions I have on others and their communities. The community I have
decided to research and open up my mind to was the homosexual community.
Unfortunately popular culture and individuals themselves can be very shallow. The
idea of a judgment free world is idealistic, everyone falls victim to preconceived notions and
judgments towards others. In or culture it is known that first impressions can make or break
you, whether it is a job interview, or a date the first seconds you meet someone can decide
their views on you for the entirety of the relationship. Dominant culture can have a large
effect on a community, as the name clearly states the dominant culture influences the
majority of people and their views.
A community that has recently seen a lot of publicity in the dominant culture is the
homosexual community. Whether it is on popular television shows, on the news, or just in
the local schools. For instance the show modern family,
this is a fairly popular television show that has a
homosexual couple in a main role in the television show
(shown in the picture below). At first glance the two males
Figure 1 Modern Family's
Homosexual couple

seem normal besides the physical contact, but

upon watching the television show they are very clearly

PERCEPTION OF THE HOMOSEXUAL COMMUNITY

homosexual. Both fit into certain stereotypes that are perpetuated by shows such as this and
popular culture. The two are very fashion forward and emotion, as well as cheery. Where
none of these traits have directly negative connotations to them it is very clear that the two
are emasculated. Which is not necessarily the case for all of the homosexual community.
Other circumstances where the homosexual community is brought up is in the area of the
legalization of gay marriage, many states have started to legalize gay marriage, including
elected officials and general public (Wooford C. 2014) which shows support of the
homosexual community among the dominant culture. The acceptability of the homosexual
community has slowly been changing over the last two to three decades. In 1973 seventy
percent of people surveyed felt that same-sex relationships were always wrong (Williams,
H) that statistic has slowly changed over the year where in 2010 when people were surveyed
with the same question the percentage was down to 43.7.
The homosexual community has been seeing significantly more publicity in every
aspect of media. Some of this attention has been positive but along with the positives there
are also negative aspects to the attention. The positive aspect of the attention is the rising
level of support on the front of the legalization of gay marriage. It has been covered
extensively on media and has proven to increase the support ratings among the public.
Along with all the attention many of stereotypes can be transmitted to the public. Often the
dominant culture uses the media as their sole source of information on topics so if
something is improperly portrayed on the news it can be carried on through the public. Even
though there are both positives and negatives to the coverage of the community on media
the more important thing is that it is being covered. If topics such as same sex marriage were
brought up in media forty years ago there would have been a full out riot in the streets
among the dominant culture.

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With the issue of the acceptance of the homosexual community along comes the
discrimination factor that the dominant culture has upon the community. As with all
communities that do not conform to that of which the dominant culture deems acceptable
or right the homosexual community must face discrimination and adversity. A study done by
Vickie Mays and Susan Cochran looked into the issue of discrimination of the homosexual
community. Studies have shown that homosexuals are having higher rates of stress-sensitive
psychiatric disorders than the heterosexual people.(Insert about the people I have
interviewed and their personal experience with discrimination due to their sexuality)
Out of the homosexual interviewed as part of this study results showed that 42 percent
attributed discrimination had a negative affect to quality of life and indicators of psychiatric
morbidity(Mays V & Cochran S 2011). With number like these even though the sample size
was relatively small the reflections of the dominant cultures discrimination upon the
homosexual communities is clearly seen. More detail on the graphs and research can be
obtained here. After examining those visuals in that research project and just the general
research project itself it really put the issue of discrimination of the homosexual community
into perspective. Often time people who were surveyed said that denial from a job or even a
neighborhood could have been directly related to the simple fact that they were not
heterosexual. Often times issues such as this are avoided or not talked about even though
they may be prevalent in the dominant culture, not until some research is done that ones
eyes can be opened to the situation at hand. Seeing these statistics about the mental health of
the homosexual community really put things in to perspective.
Other areas where the homosexual community and more specifically the male
population see a lot of attention is with the heterosexual female population. The attention
from this group is different than that of the general view but still holds on to some of the

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stereotypes that are enforced my media or just socially. While the stereotypes held by
females about homosexual males are not necessarily of the negative sort they still can cause
social pressure on the community, which affects that community in several ways. The classic
case of non-negative stereotype held by females is the gay best friend every girl must have
or really wants. In an article that I found online it talks about all the benefits of the coveted
gay best friend the shopping, the wit, the security, the style, and the flirting(Bexley S. 2012)
while many homosexual males may share some or all of these traits there is still a large
portion that are not the gay best friend material and that can cause social pressures from
females on the male homosexual community. (Insert from interviews about social
pressures felt from females in the gay best friend category).
Given that I would say that I fall into the dominant culture I can also say that I
probably share several views about different communities with it due to my affiliation with
dominant culture. That being said I would also like to claim that I aware enough of what I
am being subjected to through popular media and other forms of information or
indoctrination that I am able to construct my own preconceived notions about communities
and cultures. I come from a fairly normal American family as I see, which of course thats
how I see it because it is the norm for me because it is what I have been exposed to all my
life. We are white, middle class, publically educated, republican, non-divorced, heterosexual,
military family. Along with many other factors that have an affect on out family identity. All
of these play a role in my preconceived notions of anything. As much as I would like to deny
it, I am often extremely judgmental and critical of others and even myself. So when it come
to homosexual community the same thing applies, while I may not share all the views or
stereotypes perpetuated by the dominant culture I am sure I hold a couple in my
subconscious when I first meet or see a homosexual whether they be male or female. Things

PERCEPTION OF THE HOMOSEXUAL COMMUNITY

like they must not do masculine things or homophobic thoughts occasionally cross my mind
even when I try to suppress them. That being said having the opportunity to meet with and
study the homosexual community has given me a great opportunity to disprove some of
those stereotypes or misconception that I may have just due to lack of education or
familiarity with the community. The emersion into the culture and community that makes up
the identity of the homosexual community give me a chance to meet with the either
exceptions to the stereotypes or the normal ones for lack of a better word.
Through this opportunity I have been able to expose myself to several things that are
outside of my comfort zone or otherwise I wouldnt do, through these experiences I have
been able to expand my views upon the homosexual community. Through this experience I
can also say that my acceptance of a community that I am not associated with has improved
not only towards the homosexual community but also but also towards just communities
that I do not associate with in general. Applying the lessons and knowledge gained through
this assignment to a broader extent allows me to accept other communities at least a little bit
more than I may have previously done. Even though we have only been studying out
communities for a short period of time I have already seen a change in my perception of the
community. With just a minor amount of education of what the community goes through as
far as hardships, discrimination, or just everyday life has already opened my eyes to some of
the misjudgments. For example the after reading in to the study about the mental health
conditions that the homosexual community, it makes me feel bad about any judgment or
discrimination I may have had upon them even if it was not verbal or had a direct impact on
their life.

PERCEPTION OF THE HOMOSEXUAL COMMUNITY

To be done during finalization of paper:
-insert images and commentary on them
-insert hyperlinks
-properly format the reference page
-insert commentary in relation to the interviews
-gain one or two more sources to be able to lengthen the paper with

References

PERCEPTION OF THE HOMOSEXUAL COMMUNITY

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Brizee, A. (2010, May 5). General format. Retrieved from
http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/560/01/

Troiden, R. (1988). Gay and Lesbian Identity: A Sociological Analysis (1st ed., Vol. 1). Dix
Hills: Ravi Mehra.
Williams, H. (n.d.). Americans Move Dramatically Toward Acceptance of
Homosexuality.NORC, 1(1). Retrieved October 5, 2014, from
http://www.norc.org/NewsEventsPublications/PressReleases/Pages/american-acceptanceof-homosexuality-gss-report.aspx
Mays, V., & Cochran, S. (2001). Mental Health Correlates of Perceived Discrimination
Among Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Adults in the United States. American Journal of Public
Health, 1(1), 1-20. Retrieved October 6, 2014, from
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1446893/#!po=2.50000
Bexley, S. (2012, February 1). Does every woman need a gay bestfriend. Femail, 1-1.

Figure 1
ABC Modern Family. (2012). Mitch and Cam, Retrieved October 5, 2014, from:
http://www.yourtv.com.au/blog.aspx?blogentryid=690757&showcomments=true (