Essay about Discrimination Against LGBTQ+

Psychology is, in simplest terms, the study of the human experience. From a more complex standpoint, it is an attempt to explain how and why one interacts with oneself and the environment one exists in (textbook, 2019). In its most practiced form, psychology is used to treat and eliminate the struggles of those who have deviated from neurotypical behaviors, especially those who languish in their daily lives. The importance and purpose of psychology are one of the same. Without seeking to understand the most central parts of oneself - the ‘whys’ of ones actions - and the actions of those around us, we would not be a proficient species. Psychology is simply an innate, intrinsic, and quintessential part of humanity. 

Discrimination against LGBTQ+ individuals is by no means a new topic of discussion, but it is still something that I have personally witnessed and experienced. While living in a small town comprised primarily of homophobic southerners, verbal and physical abuse towards those opposite the population is an extremely common spectacle. From gossiping about the only “out” neighbor to the crude destruction of pride flags, prejudice is innate within my small community.  I grew up watching grown men threaten young adults with violence, the only reason for it being a difference in sexual orientation. 

Eventually, everyone experiences attraction to another person, whether it is sexual, romantic, emotional, or all three. Discovering the preferences for these attractions determines ones sexual orientation ( textbook author, 2019).  Within the article “Trying to figure out where we belong” published by M.A. Ghabrial, the topic of how discrimination against LGBTQ+ individuals affects the individuals well being is discussed,  as well as the concept of “come out stress”. Come out stress is the pressure put on LGBTQ+  individuals to come out, which causes some queer people to “feel less authentic and further separates them from the mainstream queer community.” (Ghabrial, 2017, p.51). Feeling pressure to come out with ones sexual orientation is extremely common, although it is not an option for many LGBTQ+ people due to their community consisting primarily of homophobic individuals. The discrimination faced after coming out in a prejudiced town is mentally scarring and has lead to lifelong depression and anxiety in myself and others. Of course, this is not the case for everyone, but being surrounding by homophobic behavior conditions one to be scared of coming out, as was such within my community.  

Gender roles are the characteristics and interests that are expected for boys, girls, men, and women within a culture.  Gender roles go hand in hand with gender role socialization or the concept of learning expectations about gender roles through social information inside the environment. (author 2019) . For example, in my intolerant community, the social information I was exposed to heavily enforced stereotypical gender roles and sexual orientations. I was conditioned to follow these stereotypes due to them being the most common idea and something that was rewarded with tolerance. Differing from the norm led to discrimination, resulting in an extreme loss of self-confidence. The concept of following set roles places strict limits on an individuals personality and allows no room to explore the self, an integral part of life.