Why did you choose to be straight?  Funny how people are so sure that homosexuality is a choice and yet, heterosexuality isn’t. Not only is homosexuality seen as a choice based solely on sexual desire by a large portion of society, it’s seen as the “wrong” choice. Because of this perspective, some people are bullied and discriminated against because of their sexual orientation. This can cause severe psychological damage for those on the receiving end of ill treatment.  According to the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender, aka LGBT, 25% of all kids from 5th grade to 12th grade are bullied for being gay and 30% usually attempted or commit suicide.       The primary reason for other kids to bully homosexuals is religion. The bible states three different times that homosexuality is a sin. One of the quotes that is most used from the bible is Leviticus 18:22; “You shall not lie with a male as one lies with a female; it is an abomination.” But religion isn’t and should not be used as an excuse to be hateful to another human being. In fact, the bible also states we should treat one another with kind words as it clearly stated in Ephesians 4:29 “ Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to use and edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers.” And if you ask most people, calling someone “fag” just to hurt their feelings is corrupt language. It is one thing to have a belief and another to be rude; the bible is not a weapon.                                                                          

Sadly religion isn’t the only reason people are bullied. Another reason is fear of homosexuals. Homophobia is the dislike or prejudice of the homosexual community. Culturally speaking men tend to  act aggressively towards gays to protect their social status, masculinity, and out of fear that displaying tolerance toward other gay males will reflect upon their own sexuality. In general, gay males are seen as being less of a man.  Online data suggests that for men, there is a “zero tolerance” rule concerning the association with other males of alternative life styles. Meaning if there is one drunken kiss that was a mistake or a too intimate friendship between two guys then they are automatically gay even if they really aren’t and it’s almost impossible to prove that you are not. Apparently, one of the aspects of the “zero tolerance” rule is a man can NOT defend a gay man from being threatened and they cannot support gay rights. So a way to “stay golden” or in the clear of the “Homo-police” is to attack and lash out at the gay community. On the website, Religious Tolerence.org, A group of students at University of Georgia in 1996 had an experiment to see the average percentage of homophobic men they gathered 64 white men and recorded 35 white men who were homophobic, that’s almost 55% of the group.         The first two topics I address about homosexuality most related to men and not women. Girls get bullied in a different sense and in most cases it is the gay males who are persecuted more severely. Lesbians usually are told they are gay because they haven’t found the right man or they are an “attention hog.”  A gay women/teen according to a LGBT blog has to deal with willfully ignorant, self-centered, vain men who believe that if the woman “hooks up” with him for one night that she won’t like women anymore. Which according to most women is entirely untrue. So in the end males are bullied for homosexuality with an intense aggression and women are bombarded with perverts.                          

So in closing throughout time we have treated homosexuals badly. In my personal opinion, I believe in and support gay rights. Even as a Christian, I don’t use my religion to form my opinions. I use my heart and as a human being I try to love all. Now that I’ve covered the statistics of how many kids are bullied for being gay, the bible bullying, the zero tolerance bullying, and the perverse bullying. In the end, the question is if you a person who attacks gays, Will you change your ways by using your heart to form you opinions on people or will you the bible or your own willful  ignorance to decided who you will accepted into our community?