The year 2020 is when diversity is speaking louder than ever: starting from Black Lives Matter spread and leading to the increased attention to the other minority representatives. It might seem like LGBTQ community members also discover greater acceptance and recognition. You can see gay students or same-sex couples in almost every Netflix series, and it should make you understand that they are an equal part of society. It does not work for real life because society is still full of prejudices that severely affect LGBTQ community members’ well-being. Moreover, social prejudices do not let them have fulfilling lives, achieve goals, and be happy. Society must change its attitude and liquidate prejudice among the LGBTQ community members, as the consequences of these attitudes are disastrous.
Inequity and intolerance to the minorities begin from the school years and crystallize in people’s minds as they grow up. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services discovered that LGBTQ youth representatives, who died by suicide, were five times more often bullied in schools (LGBTQ youth, 2017). Teenagers learn that their orientation or another diverse characteristic will not be accepted, so they hide it, avoid social contacts, and create a bad self-image. These stress factors lead to depression, drug addiction, poor quality of life, and suicide. School is the stage everyone goes through and bullying within this time signals about the lack of respect for diversity and the absence of equal rights. Educational institutions build the society, and suicide statistics reveal the terrible treatment of LGBTQ community members inside it.
The way how sexual minorities see themselves, and how others react to them has their roots in the moral values of a person. As Barnett et al. (2020) showed in the recent study, “sexual minorities, who emphasize binding moral foundations may have more negative attitudes toward other sexual minorities as well as their own sexuality” (p.7). The study claimed that social prejudices among the LGBTQ community representatives force them to think of their orientation negatively and reduce the moral level of decisions they make. Sexual minorities are getting better social and legal recognition nowadays, yet prejudices still exist, leading to stigma, discrimination, and a harmful social environment. These factors cause mental health disorders, abuses, suicide attempts, and poor quality of life among LGBTQ community members.
Most of the decisions a person makes throughout life are depended on their beliefs and values. The research of Barnett et al. (2020) also investigated moral foundations, attitudes toward the sexual orientation of LGBTQ people based on their ethical decision-making. After interviewing the focus group through online surveys, researchers concluded that social prejudice interrupts people’s self-acceptance, and they start to consider their affiliation to the LGBTQ community as immoral. This attitude vastly impacts the self-esteem, health, and moral values of an individual. The study suggests that society respects not only the LGBTQ community in general but acts respectfully with each representative in particular.
Historically, prejudice related to sexual minorities always took place in social life and many cruel ways. The government, society, and religious institutions punished gay people by torturing them, treating them violently, and even killing them. Thus, people with this kind of diversity tended to hide, and humanity’s memory still recognizes sexual diversity as something severe and wrong. The level of the stigma of the previous generations was higher, and people hid their orientation for the sake of living a healthy life and being a part of society. As the authority of diversity grew more prominent, more people made a coming out and became the victims of discrimination.
In 2020, the ways of punishing people like torturing and killing sound insane, and LGBTQ community members will never be legally judged because of their sexual orientation. However, social prejudice among them leads to poor mental health, disorders, and suicide attempts. It turns out that society still treats sexual minorities violently, hurts them, but in a more sophisticated way. It acts against the whole idea of an equal society, and people who apply their prejudice to others must not be considered decent members.
Society is the union of individuals, and people build it for centuries to reach a higher level of well-being for each. Thus, we must respect all of the people around us, regardless of their diverse qualities, as they impact lives. Moreover, members of minorities must be advocated and protected, and they deserve it for all the mistreatments throughout history. An inspiring example of an LGBTQ rights defender is advocate John Lewis. He passed away on July 17, and, as a tribute, citizens of the United States refocused attention on the problems of the LGBTQ community’s treatment. He defeated the rights of the minorities for the last three decades, and the pride protests that take place in different states nowadays are his legacy. The ability to speak about the rights loudly moves the community forward, and the voices of its representatives need to be heard as soon as possible. Social prejudice among the LGBTQ community members kills people, and it must be unacceptable in modern society. It is everyone’s responsibility to make the world a better place, and treating people equally well can be a significant step to start living a decent life.
References
Barnett, M. D., Maciel, I. V., & Sligar, K. B. (2020). Moral foundations, sexual prejudice, and outness among sexual minorities. Sexuality & Culture, 1-10. Web.
LGBTQ youth. (2017). StopBullying. Web.