Baby Steps

Public relationships between two women are becoming increasingly popular. Of course they have always existed, however it seems as though recently the fight for gay rights has had a visible impact. Many female celebrities are open about their relationships with other women. Binnie Klein, a psychotherapist from Yale University, agrees that alternative relationships are on the rise. People have more freedom and courage to pursue these relationships as the prejudices are slowly dissolved. For a long time scientists have battled with the question of homosexuality and whether it is caused by nature or nurture. Only recently has the opinion started to lean toward the nurture side, especially when concerning women. The term “sexual fluidity” means that people have a “capacity to respond erotically in unexpected ways due to particular situations or relationships.” Sexual fluidity is apparently more prevalent in women. Women are less rigidly fixed toward a definite sex compared to men and are attracted to both sexes more naturally than men. Women seek emotional connection to a person and can be won over by character.
The gay rights movement in the United States is an extremely controversial and misunderstood one. Many people still reject homosexuality outright. Others not only accept it but try to more fully understand it. Understanding is the first step to accepting. Before homosexual relationships become mainstream there are a lot of obstacles to conquer. Old fashioned and traditional views are some of the toughest of these obstacles. Marriage is the most obvious and publicized example. First we must overturn many age-old beliefs. So many people are fixated on the idea of relationships consisting only of a man and a woman, having grown up knowing nothing else. How do you erase years and years of societal perceptions? Slowly. Social conformity makes sure of this. Stereotypes cast negative light on homosexuality that lead to irreversible prejudice. People are conditioned by society to believe one way, and one way only. The exact motivation for this discrimination is hard to identify—fear of the unknown is one theory. People fear what is different and believe that defying it is a way of protecting their own values. Their culture is the right culture and anything outside lays in opposition to it. People tend to possess an ‘us and them’ mentality. It’s going to take time to make it a “we” mentality. The increasing prevalence in public same-sex relationships proves that lately progress has been made. These relationships also serve to further this progress.

http://www.cnn.com/2009/LIVING/personal/04/23/o.women.leave.menfor.women/index.html