One of the strongest arguments for the continuance of censoring homosexual issues is that if such issues are made available to the public, our youth will be corrupted. We once feared the dangers of sex, we would corrupt them, but today, sex education is a graduation requirement in most states. By teaching children about sex, we lessen the likelihood of our children's contracting STDs or becoming pregnant. Similarly, if we teach children about homosexuality, we will lessen the risk of their experimenting with it out of a sense of rebellion, or engaging in homosexual relationships without knowing the dangers associated with homosexuality. By teaching children about homosexuality, we give them the power to decide whether they want to involve themselves in a potentially dangerous--and a definitely controversial--topic. However, there are limits as to how much we should teach our children about homosexuality. One major complaint against gays is that they want to show graphic films of homosexual relations in order to teach children about homosexuality (The Homosexual Threat).
If we present homosexuality no more graphically than we present heterosexuality, it would be more acceptable to our culture. Through better education, we can help our children understand the good and bad sides of homosexuality. AIDS has recently become a source of great concern in our society. It has been interpreted as a warning from God by many people (Melchezidik Vigilance). There is a belief that AIDS can only be contracted by gay men (Exposing the Myths). Perhaps in the early 1980s, when AIDS was first being researched, it was found in mainly gay males, but today, AIDS is a danger to anyone. Heterosexuals can contract AIDS from unsafe sex just as homosexuals can. There are also many cases of patients contracting AIDS through blood transplants. Today, AIDS is not a plague that visits only homosexuals. However, it is true that AIDS once wAS and still is more common among homosexuals than heterosexuals. The more we educate our children about homosexuality, the less likely it is that they will contract AIDS, regardless of whether they are gay or not. Some people who harbor a disliking of gay people believe that homosexuals try to run the government and gain their powerful positions through lying and deceivinbg the public (The Homosexual Agenda, Christian). We must remember that homosexuals are human beings just like heterosexuals--they do not lie or deceive, on average, any more than we do. But if some homosexuals do attempt to influence our government through lying and deceit, then we have all the more reason to educate the public about them. The more we know about homosexuals, the less likely it is that they will be able to deceive us--and the less likely that we will assume untrue generalizations about their character.
As expressed at the Hidden Political Agenda web site and its links, there is a fear that gays will one day rule society and persecute heterosexuals. This could be based upon the fact that today, heterosexuals rule society and persecute homosexuals. By being closed minded about homosexuals, we run the risk of their being closed minded about us one day. By keeping in mind that gays are human like us, we may lessen our fears of them and realize that we need not persecute them:"We must remember . . . not to harm homosexuals in any way "(World). Almost half a century ago, a study called Sexual Behavior in the Human Male, conducted by Alfred C. Kinsey, reported that 10% of the population was gay (Murray). Even if that number has not increased, a large percentage of our society is formed of homosexual people. It is important to provide information about them so that we can understand them better, and so that they can understand the risks--not solely of being gay, but of being sexually active. Without proper education about the gay population, our children could end up with ugly misconceptions--or worse, with STDs they did not think they were susceptible to. Even if we choose to maintain our disliking of homosexuals, it is important to be informed about them. No matter what we think of gays, knowledge is the best way to combat our fears. If we believe that homosexuals will corrupt our children, we should endeavor to learn more about them.
As the creator of The Homosexual Agenda web site states that, "I agree that Homosexuals should be exposed so we can protect our children from them." If we believe that AIDS is a curse reserved for homosexuals, we should study how AIDS is spread and realize that we are also susceptible to it. If we believe that gays will one day persecute heterosexuals, we should try to accept them now--and learn about them in order to find out if they are, in fact, deserving of our persecution. As Martin Luther King told us, "the only thing to fear is fear itself"; the more we know, the less we will fear.
