Rethinking Homosexuality

The very field of sociology was in part founded on the discovery that suicide rates are as much a sociological phenomenon as they are psychological.

Around the turn of the century, French sociologist Emile Durkheim found that single people were more likely to be victims than married individuals, Protestants more likely than Catholics, urban residents more likely than rural folks. Arguing that suicide was related to the nature of the bonds between self and society, Durkheim argued that either excessive or deficient levels of integration and regulation lead to four "ideal types" of suicide:

egoistic: perhaps the most prevalent form in the United States, is the result of too little social integration, such as the suicide of a retired elderly widower;

altruistic: the consequence of excessive integration, such as deaths of a Japanese kamikaze pilot during World War II or the self-sacrifice of an Indian suttee, where a widow throws herself upon her husband's funeral pyre;

anomic: results from too little regulation or the shattering of one ties with society, such as with divorce or unemployment;

fatalistic: this form is the result of excessive regulation coupled with high personal needs to control one's environment, as when a highly motivated college student takes his own life upon failing a critical exam.

To see this social variability of suicide, click here to see the 2001 state rates. Across the United States there is a four-fold difference in rates, ranging from New Mexico (19.8 suicides per 100,000 population) and Montana (19.3) to New York (6.6) and Massachusetts (6.7). Among the major predictors: 1998 divorce rates (r=.75), the percent of the population having no religious affiliation (r=.41), 1995 fatal accident rates (.59), and the percent of the state comprised of Catholics (r=-.40).

Let's say for sake of argument that certain personality types are significantly more predisposed. However, historical and anthropological studies show how different cultures seem to produce distinctive spectrums of personality types and that modal types can change over time. In other words, the proportion of suicide-prone persons in a population is socio-culturally determined. Further, changing social conditions can either trigger or suppress the suicidal urge of these types of selves:


In Norway, the suicide rate is approximately one-third that of Denmark and Sweden even though all three countries are very similar ethnically, culturally, and geographically. In Suicide in Different Cultures, Faberow argues the lower Norwegian rate is due to its more supportive family environments and childrearing practices.

Studies in the early 1980s, for instance, found that the number of suicides in the U.S. increased by 360 a year for each one percent rise in unemployment.

Suicides, as well as homicides, plummeted in the country during World War II.

Being homosexual in a homophobic community can be lethal. A 1989 study for the Department of Health and Human Services estimated that 30 percent of youth suicides are committed by gay and lesbian young people.

A 1986 study by David P. Phillips and Lundie Carstensen found that between 1973 and 1979 teen-age suicides increased by about 7 percent in the seven days following 38 nationally-televised stories of suicide.


Bottom line: suicide is a highly complex phenomenon that involves the interactions between genetic, biochemical, psychological, societal, and cultural factors.

http://www.lambda.org/youth_suicide.htm
SUMMARY

Gay and lesbian youth belong to two groups at high risk of suicide: youth and homosexuals. A majority of suicide attempts by homosexuals occur during their youth, and gay youth are 2 to 3 times more likely to attempt suicide than other young people. They may comprise up to 30 percent of completed youth suicides annually. The earlier youth are aware of their orientation and identify themselves as gay, the greater the conflicts they have. Gay youth face problems in accepting themselves due to internalization of a negative self image and the lack of accurate information about homosexuality during adolescence. Gay youth face extreme physical and verbal abuse, rejection and isolation from family and peers. They often feel totally alone and socially withdrawn out of fear of adverse consequences. As a result of these pressures, lesbian and gay youth are more vulnerable than other youth to psychosocial problems including substance abuse, chronic depression, school failure, early relationship conflicts, being forced to leave their families, and having to survive on their own prematurely. Each of these problems presents a risk factor for suicidal feelings and behavior among gay, lesbian, bisexual and transsexual youth.

The root of the problem of gay youth suicide is a society that discriminates against and stigmatizes homosexuals while failing to recognize that a substantial number of its youth has a gay or lesbian orientation. Legislation should guarantee homosexuals equal rights in our society. We need to make a conscious effort to promote a positive image of homosexuals at all levels of society that provides gay youth with a diversity of lesbian and gay male adult role models. We each need to take personal responsibility for revising homophobic attitudes and conduct. Families should be educated about the development and positive nature of homosexuality. They must be able to accept their child as gay or lesbian. Schools need to include information about homosexuality in their curriculum and protect gay youth from abuse by peers to ensure they receive an equal education. Helping professionals need to accept and support a homosexual orientation in youth. Social services need to be developed that are sensitive to and reflective of the needs of gay and lesbian youth.

It has been only relatively recently that there has been recognition that gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender youth (generally defined as ages 15-24) are at an increased risk of suicide compared to other youth. A growing body of research literature has provided the estimate that gays, lesbians, and bisexual youth attempt suicide at a rate 2-3 times higher than their heterosexual peers. Some studies indicate that the rate of attempted suicide for transgender youth is higher than 50%. These studies are not documenting only a recent phenomenon; some are retrospective studies, interviewing older members of these minority groups and finding higher rates for attempted suicide during these individuals' youth decades ago. It is only the attention to this problem that is recent.

Suicide and GLTB youth

Deaths: Final Data for 2003 .. CDC numbers and analysis






<sociology of death and dying. I took way too many of these courses in 1 year>

Not sure why the link above isn't a link

http://www.lambda.org/youth_suicide.htm

Suicide's in there, real life.

Follow the links.

The gay rights movement has found God.

After decades of working to change secular institutions, the national movement, which has largely convinced society that homosexuality is neither a mental disorder nor a crime, is focusing on what its leaders say is their last, and biggest, challenge: convincing believers that it's not a sin.

The National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, the country's oldest gay rights organization, announced Monday that a religious organization representing 1,400 Protestant congregations that unconditionally welcome gays and lesbians has merged with the task force.

Over the next five years, the task force wants to increase membership in the Institute for Welcoming Resources to 10,000 congregations.

"It's a very proud and happy day for the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender movement," said Matt Foreman, executive director of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force, which is based in New York. "We see this as a critically important step in reclaiming the language of faith and moral values from those on the right that attempt to hijack faith and moral values."

real life, did you read any of the other materials/links I posted?

Got any comments?

I think I'll wait to give you any more 'clues' til I see there's an actual point to doing so.

Thanks for setting yourself up!

Sources

Why do you hate gays?

Thanks for setting yourself up!

Sources

Why do you hate gays?

Lash wrote:

Thanks for setting yourself up!

Sources

Why do you hate gays?

Why do you incorrectly assume this?