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Tuesday, November 25, 1997

Homophobia was label's basis

SEXUAL: Warning of 'Ellen's' adult content perpetuated ignorance

By Mike Hendrix

The UC Riverside Highlander

When Ellen Degeneres came out of the closet last spring on her popular TV sitcom, "Ellen," the show came with a warning label cautioning the audience of the "adult content" of the program. Considering other shows on TV that were full of sexual innuendoes with no warning at all, this seemed inconsistent.

The big difference between TV shows like "Men Behaving Badly," or "Friends," and "Ellen" is that the former depicts heterosexual behavior while "Ellen" made the bold step toward discussion of homosexual relationships. The implication of the warning label is that homosexual relationships are perverted. You would think that in the light of scientific evidence, the notion of homosexuality as a perversion would have met a quiet death, but such is not the case. Homophobia lives on, and with it, irrational discrimination. On Saturday night, Ellen Degeneres spoke of the troubles and triumphs of making the "coming out" episode of her show at the Human Rights Campaign Fund's annual national dinner.

At the same event President Clinton also spoke and became the first U.S. president to address a gay civil rights group. However, presidential approval does little to dissuade the people that motivated the warning label.

The problem is that most people are rather ignorant of the subject of sexual orientation, and in their state of ignorance make many wrong assumptions.

One assumption is that sexual orientation is a conscious decision people make. I personally do not ever remember making that decision. I did not sit down one night and consider the advantages and disadvantages of sexual orientation - I always liked females. In fact, in light of the tremendous ridicule and discrimination that gays face, it seems unlikely that anyone would decide that they were gay. Sexuality is an innate characteristic rooted deep within our biological makeup. There is scientific evidence in hormone and brain chemistry studies as well as genetics that show sexual orientation has a strong biological component.

In one hormone study a very critical period was found in the second to fifth month after conception where the hormonal balance that the fetus was exposed to resulted in the sexual orientation of that individual. However, once that critical period had passed, modification of sexual orientation is difficult, if not impossible.

In another study, Simon Levy, a neuroscientist, found that an area of the hypothalamus that governs sexual behavior is twice as large in heterosexual men as in homosexual men. Finally, in a study of homosexual orientation of pairs of twins, it was found that almost two-thirds of the monozygotic twins had a homosexual orientation, but less than one-third of dizygotic twins did.

These studies only suggest part of the story. An individual's sexual orientation - heterosexual or homosexual - is most likely determined by a combination of genetic, hormonal, cognitive and environmental factors.

Most people have had little if any exposure to the facts regarding sexual orientation, and in the absence of insight, fear dominates. Some people fear that homosexuals are looking for converts and that exposure may cause homosexuality as if it was a contagious disease. A few people have the incorrect assumption that homosexuals are also child molesters and fear that homosexuals will harm their children.

Others are motivated by religious reasons, primarily Christian, in their opposition to gay rights. The primary defense is a Bible verse, Leviticus 18:22. But in trying to dictate to homosexuals with one Bible verse they contradict another: "Thou shalt not judge."

The fact is no one has the right to dictate to others something as personal and innate as sexual orientation. Sexual orientation should have nothing to do with keeping a job, having a place to live, obtaining health care or deserving common respect. In fact, sexuality, whether actively participating or not, should not be a basis of the public labeling process. When was the last time you wanted to be judged and known by your sexual orientation or active participation status? Imagine: "Not getting any? Well, you are now an official outcast! Be gone, be labeled, hide your disease!" Get real.

The warning label was taken off of the show "Ellen," and it was about time. Maybe we can start to discuss the issue from an enlightened point of view rather than one of ignorance and fear.

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