Gay Rights

Paper Summary:

This paper introduces, discusses and analyzes the topic of civil rights in America. Specifically it discusses gay/lesbian rights and how gays are treated like second-class citizens in the United States. The paper argues that gays and lesbians face social stigma and bigotry and face many of the same civil rights issues that Blacks faced four decades ago.

From the Paper:

"Because America will not accept gay marriage, there are many other avenues that are not open to gays that are open to other Americans. For example, adoption laws favor heterosexual couples over gay couples, and three states, Florida, Mississippi, and Utah, will not allow gay or same-sex couples to adopt at all (Editors, 2008). Gays who want to serve in the military have to hide their sexual orientation or face discharge, and many gays face hate crimes and other violence from a misunderstanding and critical society. Being gay in America is difficult, much more difficult than it needs to be, and there are numerous social and personal issues that gays face every day that most Americans would never put up with. Gays are where blacks were 40 years or more ago in this country, and they are discriminated against just as badly as blacks were at that time. It is not fair, and as Americans, we should stand up and speak out against these injustices, because we are supposed to be a free and democratic society, and this issue clearly shows we are not."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Caldwell, J. (2004). Prodding the Fortune 500: One gay rights leader learned that equality in the workplace may come by simply asking for it. 62.
• Editors. (2008). Fact file. Retrieved 13 March 2008 from the PublicAgenda.org Web site: http://www.publicagenda.org/issues/factfiles.cfm?issue_type=gay_rights.
• Quam, J. K. (2004). 7 Issues in gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender aging. Handbook of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender administration and policy, Swan, W. (Ed.) (pp. 137-155). New York: Marcel Dekker.
• Weinstein, S. (2007, September 11). A labor of love: Gay rights activists are finding common ground and forming surprising alliances with America's labor unions. The Advocate 12.
• Wyman, H. (2004). 5 New GLBT political and policy developments. In Handbook of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender administration and policy, Swan, W. (Ed.) (pp. 91-123). New York: Marcel Dekker.

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