Equality between sexual orientations Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Equality between sexual orientations - Essay Example The Principle that all people are equal before the law is the corner stone of many societies. However, many do not follow this principle to the letter. For example, for a long time women were always regarded and given the second class status in the United States and until the 1920s, they were not entitled to vote during federal elections. Similarly, blacks in the United States had no guarantee to equal rights under the law until the passage of Civil Rights Act in 1964. The main provision of the Act stated that all persons within the Jurisdiction of USA have the same right in every state and territory. The Act gave everybody the right to enforce contracts, to sue, give evidence, and any other right that was enjoyed by the whites (David 44). The Act declared that no person in the United States shall be discriminated on the bases of race, color or nationality of Origin. According to the act, no individual shall be discriminated in or be denied the benefit of any program or activity receiving the Federal Financial assistance. This declaration of equal rights was extended to people with physical and mental impairment that substantially limits a significant life activity. This was through the enactment of people with disability Act in 1990 still in USA (Leslie 24). Nevertheless, as society tries to attain the principle of equality under the law, one significant group has been left out for a long time: lesbians and gay men. Individuals’, agencies and organizations in most places still discriminate against gay men and lesbian in housing, employment, access to public accommodations, and other fields of life on the bases of their sexuality. For instance, in many states of United State, landlords refuse to rent a house to same-sex couples simply because they are either gay or lesbians. Nevertheless, several countries including some states in the US have banned this form of discrimination that bases on sexual orientation and gender expression (David 56). Discrimination in housing, employment and access to public accommodation is seen as the three basic rights issue that concern them since they are so relevant to the daily life of every gay or lesbian. Gay and lesbian people also face discrimination from the straight people in areas such as a hate crime where crime is motivated by the virtual of the victim’s gender, race, national origin, sexual orientation or some other characteristics. Gay and lesbians further face discrimination on the issue of marriage. There has been controversy over the legality of the same sex marriage and the institution. In the developmental stages of the homosexual rights movement, few individuals would have predicted that marriage would become a significant objective of the movement. Nevertheless, there has been a lot of effort by the movement to give the gay men and lesbian the same rights associated with legal marriage that is currently available to straight people couples. The issues constitute the core of the discussion over the gay and lesbians’ rights today in many societies (John 250) The gay and lesbian rights movement that was introduced in the United States was a product of economic, social and political changes that took place in the United State in early 20th century. In the 1960s, there was the growth of Civil rights movement in the US. During this period, the first hint of the presence of