Stigma and Discrimatn Affects Gay and Bisexual Men's Health | CDC

Contents:

• LBIAN, GAY, BISEXUAL, AND TRANSGENR HEALTH
• WHAT’S WRONG WH BEG “GAY”? HERE’S WHAT THEY DON’T TELL YOU -- AND ’S REALLY DISTURBG.
• IS AIDS A “GAY” DISEASE?
• GAY AND BISEXUAL MEN'S HEALTH ISSU
• STD FACTS – WHAT GAY, BISEXUAL AND OTHER MEN WHO HAVE SEX WH MEN NEED TO KNOW ABOUT SEXUALLY TRANSMTED DISEAS
• PEOPLE WHO ARE GAY, LBIAN OR BI HAVE MORE MENTAL HEALTH AND SUBSTANCE E PROBLEMS, SURVEY FDS
• GAY-RELATED IMMUNE FICIENCY

LBIAN, GAY, BISEXUAL, AND TRANSGENR HEALTH

Sce 1975, APA has lled on psychologists to take the lead removg the stigma of mental illns that has long been associated wh lbian, gay, and bisexual orientatns. The prejudice and discrimatn that people who intify as lbian, gay, or bisexual regularly experience have been shown to have negative psychologil effects.

This page provis accurate rmatn for those who want to better unrstand sexual orientatn and the impact of prejudice and discrimatn on those who intify as lbian, gay, or bisexual. In the Uned Stat the most equent labels are lbians (women attracted to women), gay men (men attracted to men), and bisexual people (men or women attracted to both sex). Some people know that they are lbian, gay, or bisexual for a long time before they actually pursue relatnships wh other people.

WHAT’S WRONG WH BEG “GAY”? HERE’S WHAT THEY DON’T TELL YOU -- AND ’S REALLY DISTURBG.

Prejudice and discrimatn make difficult for many people to e to terms wh their sexual orientatn inti, so claimg a lbian, gay, or bisexual inty may be a slow procs.

There is no nsens among scientists about the exact reasons that an dividual velops a heterosexual, bisexual, gay, or lbian orientatn. Lbian, gay, and bisexual people the Uned Stat enunter extensive prejudice, discrimatn, and vlence bee of their sexual orientatn.

Public opn studi over the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s routely showed that, among large segments of the public, lbian, gay, and bisexual people were the target of strongly held negative attus. More recently, public opn has creasgly opposed sexual orientatn discrimatn, but exprsns of hostily toward lbians and gay men rema mon ntemporary Amerin society. Severe antigay prejudice is reflected the high rate of harassment and vlence directed toward lbian, gay, and bisexual dividuals Amerin society.

IS AIDS A “GAY” DISEASE?

The HIV/AIDS panmic is another area which prejudice and discrimatn agast lbian, gay, and bisexual people have had negative effects. Early the panmic, the assumptn that HIV/AIDS was a “gay disease” ntributed to the lay addrsg the massive social upheaval that AIDS would generate. The associatn of HIV/AIDS wh gay and bisexual men and the accurate belief that some people held that all gay and bisexual men were fected served to further stigmatize lbian, gay, and bisexual people.

On the social level, prejudice and discrimatn agast lbian, gay, and bisexual people are reflected the everyday stereotyp of members of the groups. The stereotyp persist even though they are not supported by evince, and they are often ed to exce unequal treatment of lbian, gay, and bisexual people.

GAY AND BISEXUAL MEN'S HEALTH ISSU

For example, limatns on job opportuni, parentg, and relatnship regnn are often jtified by stereotypic assumptns about lbian, gay, and bisexual people. On an dividual level, such prejudice and discrimatn may also have negative nsequenc, pecially if lbian, gay, and bisexual people attempt to nceal or ny their sexual orientatn. Although many lbians and gay men learn to pe wh the social stigma agast homosexualy, this pattern of prejudice n have ser negative effects on health and well-beg.

The wispread prejudice, discrimatn, and vlence to which lbians and gay men are often subjected are signifint mental health ncerns. Sexual prejudice, sexual orientatn discrimatn, and antigay vlence are major sourc of strs for lbian, gay, and bisexual people. Although social support is ccial pg wh strs, antigay attus and discrimatn may make difficult for lbian, gay, and bisexual people to fd such support.

Dpe the persistence of stereotyp that portray lbian, gay, and bisexual people as disturbed, several s of rearch and clil experience have led all mastream medil and mental health anizatns this untry to nclu that the orientatns reprent normal forms of human experience. Furthermore, seems likely that the promotn of change therapi rerc stereotyp and ntribut to a negative climate for lbian, gay, and bisexual persons.

STD FACTS – WHAT GAY, BISEXUAL AND OTHER MEN WHO HAVE SEX WH MEN NEED TO KNOW ABOUT SEXUALLY TRANSMTED DISEAS

Helpful rpons of a therapist treatg an dividual who is troubled about her or his same sex attractns clu helpg that person actively pe wh social prejudic agast homosexualy, succsfully rolve issu associated wh and rultg om ternal nflicts, and actively lead a happy and satisfyg life. The phrase “g out” is ed to refer to several aspects of lbian, gay, and bisexual persons’ experienc: self-awarens of same-sex attractns; the tellg of one or a few people about the attractns; wispread disclosure of same-sex attractns; and intifitn wh the lbian, gay, and bisexual muny. Like heterosexuals, lbians, gay men, and bisexual people benef om beg able to share their liv wh and receive support om fay, iends, and acquatanc.

PEOPLE WHO ARE GAY, LBIAN OR BI HAVE MORE MENTAL HEALTH AND SUBSTANCE E PROBLEMS, SURVEY FDS

Th, is not surprisg that lbians and gay men who feel they mt nceal their sexual orientatn report more equent mental health ncerns than do lbians and gay men who are more open; they may even have more physil health problems. Some adolcents sire and engage same-sex behavr but do not intify as lbian, gay, or bisexual, sometim bee of the stigma associated wh a nonheterosexual orientatn. Young people who intify as lbian, gay, or bisexual may be more likely to face certa problems, cludg beg bullied and havg negative experienc school.

GAY-RELATED IMMUNE FICIENCY

On the other hand, many lbian, gay, and bisexual youths appear to experience no greater level of health or mental health risks. Lbian, gay, and bisexual youth who do well spe strs—like all adolcents who do well spe strs—tend to be those who are socially petent, who have good problem-solvg skills, who have a sense of tonomy and purpose, and who look forward to the future.

Whether the youths intify as heterosexual or as lbian, gay, or bisexual, they enunter prejudice and discrimatn based on the prumptn that they are lbian, gay, or bisexual. For example, survey data dite that between 40% and 60% of gay men and between 45% and 80% of lbians are currently volved a romantic relatnship. For example, survey data dite that between 18% and 28% of gay upl and between 8% and 21% of lbian upl have lived together 10 or more years.

If the dividuals are a same-sex relatnship, they are likely to face the same prejudice and discrimatn that members of lbian and gay upl face. If they are a heterosexual relatnship, their experienc may be que siar to those of people who intify as heterosexual unls they choose to e out as bisexual; that se, they will likely face some of the same prejudice and discrimatn that lbian and gay dividuals enunter. Although parable data are not available, many sgle lbians and gay men are also parents, and many same-sex upl are part-time parents to children whose primary rince is elsewhere.

As the social visibily and legal stat of lbian and gay parents have creased, some people have raised ncerns about the well-beg of children the fai.

The majory of rearch on this topic asks whether children raised by lbian and gay parents are at a disadvantage when pared to children raised by heterosexual parents. For example, are the children of lbian or gay parents more vulnerable to mental breakdown, do they have more behavr problems, or are they ls psychologilly healthy than other children? The picture that emerg om this rearch shows that children of gay and lbian parents enjoy a social life that is typil of their age group terms of volvement wh peers, parents, fay members, and iends.

There is no scientific support for fears about children of lbian or gay parents beg sexually abed by their parents or their parents’ gay, lbian, or bisexual iends or acquatanc. In summary, social science has shown that the ncerns often raised about children of lbian and gay parents, ncerns that are generally ground prejudice agast and stereotyp about gay people, are unfound. Overall, the rearch dit that the children of lbian and gay parents do not differ markedly om the children of heterosexual parents their velopment, adjtment, or overall well-beg.

Lbian, gay, and bisexual people who want to help rce prejudice and discrimatn n be open about their sexual orientatn, even as they take necsary preutns to be as safe as possible. Heterosexual people who wish to help rce prejudice and discrimatn n exame their own rponse to antigay stereotyp and prejudice.