Gay...Not a Choice...

Everyday people cut down homosexuals because they believe that being gay is a choice made by an individual. The Decatur Daily News Online posted a poll with the question, "Do you think homosexuality is biological or a matter of individual choice?" and ran it for two days. Out of the 646 respondents to the poll, 458 (70.9 %) said it’s a matter of choice and 188 said it’s biological. This is a completely false assumption; recent studies show that being gay involves genetic and also involuntary changes within a person and has nothing to do with a mental voluntary choice made by the individual. Mirroring this argument, heterosexuals don’t wake up one day and say “I want to be straight!” it just happens as the person matures and develops. Heterosexuals should ask themselves a question, when did they “decide” to be straight? They soon realize that they never made a physical choice; they just developed into a person that was attracted to the opposite sex.

Dr. Dean Hamer, a "gay gene" researcher, and himself a gay man states that "Genes are hardware...the data of life's experiences are processed through the sexual software into the circuits of identity. I suspect the sexual software is a mixture of both genes and environment, in much the same way the software of a computer is a mixture of what's installed at the factory and what's added by the user." Psychiatrist Jeffrey Satinover, M.D. also studies sexual-orientation causes and states that "Like all complex behavioral and mental states, homosexuality is...neither exclusively biological nor exclusively psychological, but results from an as-yet-difficult-to-quantitate mixture of genetic factors, intrauterine influences...postnatal environment (such as parent, sibling and cultural behavior), and a complex series of repeatedly reinforced choices occurring at critical phases of development." Having a close or distant relationship with one of the parental figures can also influence a child’s sexuality.

I personally, have never in my life been attracted to women. During my early childhood development, I looked at older males with amazement, almost as role models. I wished I could be as strong, smart, muscular, and charming as them. When puberty hit, those feelings turned more towards attraction for those men who had the qualities that I once looked upon in awe. I was always very confused when I would here the other middle school boys talking about boobs and such, I never saw what was so good about them.

I had a very strong relationship with my mother, less with my father. My father was at work all day so my mom and I formed a stronger bond. When I would hang out with my elementary friends, who were mostly girls, my dad would ask "Don't you have any guy friends?". At the time, I didn't really have any guy friends because, I felt so distant and different from the rest of the boys at school. I didn't fully realize who I was inside until 8th grade.

I must ask one question, why would I "choose" to be gay if everyday of my life is filled with people insulting me, putting me down, walked all over me, being alienated, and above all discriminated against? I know I didn't choose to be gay and I'm actually kind of glad that this is who I am because, I can educate people on how hard it really is to live a lifestyle that many people disagree with. I hope to teach people that all human beings are the same and we should all be treated with respect.

More Information/Sources:
National Association for Research & Therapy of Homosexuality. (NARTH) Home Page. 18 April 2007