Promoting Equality within the LGBT community - Term Paper Example

Equality Promotion among the LGBT Introduction The emergence of the homosexual and gay group has led to the emergence of a loose community organisation of individuals belonging to the gay and lesbian community. Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) is a community of individuals who have openly expressed their non-straight sexual orientation and have come together to advocate for recognition and provision of equal rights. By developing such a wide group with massive affiliation and support across the globe, the group has strengthened its network and developed a stronger force for the advocating of its members rights. The term and the phrase were developed in 1960 to replace the derogatory phrases that were initially used to refer to individuals who were not straight in their sexuality (Zickar 97). LGBT has continued to fight for recognition and legitimate incorporation in different countries across the world, beginning in the United States. One of the main agenda behind this grouping is the fight for the provision of equal rights and equality before the law (Bayly 123). The law in different parts of the world have not accepted gay and lesbian marriages and this has affected their property ownership and child adoptions. The fight for equality has therefore sought to provide an equal environment in which the gays and lesbians can live their lives like other straight citizens. In this paper, the fight for equality by the gay and lesbian group in the United Kingdom, Europe and in other parts of the world will be analysed. This will demonstrate the gains that have been made by the group in their fight to achieve equality and recognition by the law (McLeod-Roberts 3). Benefits of promoting LGBT equality The fight for attaining an equal status in the community and in the different parts of the world by LGBT groups has focused on different aspects of equality. This has been used to explain for the need to fight for the group and to ensure that they are treated equally irrespective of the opinion towards their orientation. In different parts of Europe and the United Kingdom, gays and lesbians have been kept invincible and this has affected the development of policies that considers their plight. Equality documents and policy issues have failed to acknowledge sexuality as a personal choice that must be protected through the enactment of laws and regulations that favour equality. The need to bring sexual orientation into the public domain and advocate for equal rights in the face of everyone has pushed the current fight for LGBT equality issues (ORyan, & McFarland 74). The gays and lesbians in the community have for long felt less empowered and invisible within the society and this has been so especially in the participation in public matters especially those that relate to sexuality. The government has failed to monitor sexual orientation in different sectors of the economy and this has escalated the victimization that this group has continued to feel. Despite the progress that has been made in the legislation of laws that address the legal protection of gays and lesbians in the United Kingdom and Europe as a whole, gays and lesbians have remained ignorant of these laws. The fight and push for equality and the advocacy through the LGBT group has sought to increase membership awareness of their rights protected by the constitution (Astray-Caneda 91). Discrimination and harassment of lesbians and gays at the place of work or study has also escalated the situation and made it critical for the group to increase the fight for equality. Contract marriage is characterised by the existence of prenuptial or pre-marriage agreements that enables the parties involved to state the conditions of marriage. This form of marriage has continued to gain prominence in the united kingdom especially among individuals whose careers makes it tough for them to have formal marriages. Marriages considered by the law as informal are also characterised by the signing of agreements as the parties involved may be faced with certain disputes as pertains their marriage later in life. The existence of contract marriages and the presence of prenuptial agreements have enabled courts to resolve property and will disputes in the event that one of the parties to the marriage dies intestate. It also enables the preservation of properties acquired by both the parties in case the marriage ends prematurely through a legal divorce process (Smith & Khatami 6). The current increase in prenuptial marriages in the United Kingdom and other parts of the world has been attributed to the increased number of individuals who are more concerned with their careers as opposed to getting married. Such people may however have their partners of choice who they want to commit to in the future, which makes contract marriage a convenient alternative. In the United Kingdom, there exist a number of ways that the courts and other state law offices can use in the determination of the capacity of the concerned parties (ORyan & McFarland 74). According to de jure provisions however, a person is always considered capable unless and when these presumptions is rebutted by a court of law. According to the law, different sets of capacity and contexts are used and these are legal in nature. The capacity to marriage is multifaceted and can be limited to the judicial decisions made by the court of law. Just like the capacity to grant an attorney the right to property care, marriage is the granting the capacity of personal care to individual which makes capacity determination essential Due to the discrimination and harassment that occurs at the workplace, most gays and lesbians have chosen to keep their orientation secret to prevent a backlash. This has affected the fight for the spread of a number of sexually transmitted diseases in the country as most gays prefer to live a private life in which they fear to seek medical attention when affected with STDs. Hate crime has also increased and the response by police to emergency raised by the gay and lesbian community has also demonstrated the need for the promotion of equality among the LGBT essential (Zickar 97). The continued promotion of equality among the gay and lesbian community has been attributed to the increased access to healthcare by all individuals irrespective of their sexual orientation. In the United States for example, the enactment of the defence of marriage act enabled same sex couples to continue enjoying medical and healthcare services together without discrimination. The introduction of the Obama care health insurance policy for citizens in the country has also increased access of this group to healthcare insurance, something that was never seen before. This has cushioned the gays and lesbians in the country from purchasing expensive insurance cover from the private sector to cover for their health. This has demonstrated the benefits of the promotion of equality among the gays and lesbian community in the country and promoted the overall healthcare provision in the country. With strong laws openly advocating for the protection of the rights of the gay and lesbian communities issues of discrimination, embarrassment and threats have declined in the United Kingdom. This has promoted cohesion and togetherness among neighbours, co-workers or even students despite their sexual orientations which are public and acknowledged by all (Smith & Khatami 6). By promoting equality among the gay and lesbian groups, countries in Europe and other parts of the world would move towards fostering psychological, physical and mental wellbeing of members of the group. Some countries and states in the world still deny gay couples to enjoy the rights enjoyed by other married couples, by excluding the gays and lesbian couples from enjoying their social liberties, these countries have promoted discrimination and institutional exclusion which have continued to impact negatively on the growth and development of the gays and lesbians (Astray-Caneda 93). By allocating equal rights and benefits to gay and lesbian marriages, same sex couples have been able to thrive in the society and build relationships supported by strong psychosocial and physical wellbeing. When given the opportunity to realize their full potential as citizens of the United Kingdom, gay couples will be able to engage constructively in economic activities and contribute towards the growth of the economy. This is as opposed to the group coming together every time to fight for liberty and social space as a way of achieving equality with other people (Wheeler & Barkley 9). The support for children development in a country is paramount to its future as the children hold the potential to turn the fortunes of the country and make it more progressive. However, this can only be achieved through the stabilization of family units without discriminating based on the couple’s orientation. By promoting equality, gays and lesbians will be able to take care of their foster children by providing them with the basic necessities as the law protects them equally. In different parts of the world, millions and millions of children are today raised in gay and lesbian families and some of these children are denied equal opportunities based on their family orientation. This affects their personal development and weakens the institution of marriage by making it difficult for children to access social liberties as children in normal marriages (Wright 833). Approaches used in promoting LGBT equality The attainment of equality for the gays and lesbian group is a major task that requires massive input by different individuals within a country for the social liberties of this group to be safeguarded. The British government has been lauded for the different approaches that it has adopted to ensure that the social liberties and rights of the gays and lesbians in the country are protected. The British parliament is today considered as one of the equal employment places where gays and lesbians have equal opportunities to advance their interest in politics without discrimination (Fetner 67). The attainment of equality for the LGBT group by different bodies across the world including the United Nations and other regional bodies has adopted the use of a holistic approach that makes it mandatory to respect the rights of the gays as universal human rights. By classifying the rights and social needs of the LGBT group as universal rights, the United Nations and the regional bodies have made it quite possible for government to accept and respect the needs of this group. The united nations human rights committee and other cultural and social committees within the international body have developed policies aimed at promoting the rights of the LGBT across the world by making it essential for governments who have ratified the charter to ensure that their rights are protected (Smith & Khatami 6). The Dutch government, in its commitment to promote equality for the LGBT group have developed a number of policies aimed at providing an effective environment for different people to thrive irrespective of their sexual orientations. By providing an environment where choices on sexuality can be made in a free and safe society, the country has enhanced development of socially empowered groups who have been able to fight for recognition and compete for public position with others without discrimination. These policies recognize that every individual is entitled to a violence free life where equal life opportunities are presented irrespective of how they make the individual choices on their sexuality (Wheeler & Barkley 9). By creating a balanced society, the Dutch government have made it possible for the gay and lesbian community to thrive and grow through tolerance and respect. Gays and lesbians, like any other individual with a straight orientation may be talented and naturally born with special abilities that a country can economically benefit from. However, this can only be possible if the same government promotes equality which makes it possible for such people to advance their skills and talents and achieve their aspirations without discrimination based on their orientation. If the society accepts the orientation of an individual and lives harmoniously with it, the public and private companies in the country will also find it easy to accept the gay community into them and provide them with equal job and promotion opportunities just like other employees (Wright 833). Apart from the society, discrimination and alienation of gays and lesbians at the workplace has impacted negatively on the gains made in the continent and affected the group to advance economically. A number of companies have openly expressed reservations on engaging the gays and lesbians who have made it known that their status is not straight. Research has indicated that more than half of the commonwealth countries still discriminate gays and lesbians at the workplace and this affects their personal and economic development. Promoting equality of the LGBT group must also address the issues of discrimination at the workplace and ensure that employees are provided with equal opportunities. To achieve this, equality training must be initiated at the workplace especially within the human resource department to ensure that the recruitment process is done in a fair and just environment. The appraisal, promotion and allocation of resources to the employees must be done in a fair way without discriminating the employees based on their sexual orientation. All members of staff within organisations must be aware of the equality issues and policies that the organization has put in place. New members of the organization must also be trained on the equality policy and made to understand that discrimination and threats based on an individual’s sexual orientation is discouraged and illegal. By providing such an environment, organisations will be able to provide room for its employees to make choices without fearing of the impacts it may have on their professional development. The human resource management department must also make effective policy communication based on a non-discrimination environment that allows all employees to advance their careers and grow without fear of discrimination (Wheeler & Barkley 9). Advances on LGBT equality promotion In the fight to provide a fair and just environment for the gays and lesbians to develop without fear and discrimination, several advancements have been made by different countries in Europe. Some of these achievements have been enabled through the support of the United Nations and other gay and lesbian groups in the country who have advocated for the development of a just and equal society. Gay marriages were initially conducted as private events commissioned by the state law office due to the fear of discrimination and public outrage (Wright 835). This has however changed due to the advances that have been made in the pursuit for equality and fairness in the country. Today, gay marriages are conducted in public galleries and the process commissioned by church leaders. This demonstrates the achievements that have so far been made in the continent and the United Kingdom in particular (Smith & Khatami 6). The challenges facing gays do not end immediately after marriage but is protracted beyond marriage and this affects their ability to live a normal life and get equal opportunity to be employed. This has made it necessary for the country to make changes and adopt approaches that have enabled families and couples in such marriages to adopt children and raise them. Recommendations A number of new approaches must be developed in order to promote the rights of gays and lesbians and ensure equality across the European continent. Though a lot has so far been done to promote equality, the institution of marriage and the adoption process for gays and lesbians in the continent must be changed to enable LGBT have access to uncensored ability to raise a family. Across the United Kingdom, the number of children raised in gay and lesbian families has increased and this demonstrates the benefits of the equality approaches that the country has adopted. Access to educational facilities and healthcare services by the children and the couples has also increased and this has been possible due to the equality promotion approaches that have been adopted by the country. Employment opportunities have also been increased and workplace discrimination has also been eliminated gays and lesbians are today viewed as normal people who deserve equal opportunities and chances to advance their career and promote their economic status (McLeod-Roberts 14). Conclusion The united nation charter on human right makes it paramount for a government and an organization to ensure that the rights of its people are protected and opportunities provided equally without discrimination. Irrespective of an individual’s sexual orientation, every citizen has the right to enjoy the services of the state and this should not be denied based on their sexual orientation (Wheeler & Barkley 9). As a result, different countries and organisations have adopted approaches that have made it possible for equality for the gays and lesbians to be achieved. Through these approaches, gays and lesbians in different part of the world have benefited from increased access to healthcare services, educational and employment opportunities. Couples who are gay and lesbians have also been able to raise families and adopt children through a process that is protected by law, thanks to the equality promotion that has been achieved so far. Works Cited Astray-Caneda, Evelio. Offering Same-Sex Domestic Partner Benefits to Government Employees: Reasons, Examples, and Methods, Public Personnel Management, 40.2(2011): 89-100. Print. Bayly, Michael. 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A Phenomenological Exploration of the Experiences of Dual-Career Lesbian and Gay Couples, Journal of Counselling & Development, 88.1 (2006): 71-79. Print. Fetner, Tina. How the religious right shaped lesbian and gay activism. Minneapolis, University of Minnesota Press, 2008. Print. Read More