Are gays ‘born that way’? Most Americans now say yes, but science says no
For
the first time, a majority of Americans say that homosexuals are "born
that way." According
to the latest Gallup poll, 51 percent of Americans say that people are born gay
or lesbian, while only 30 percent say outside factors such as upbringing and
environment determine sexual orientation.
However,
science would not bear that out. No fewer than eight major studies from around the world have found
homosexuality is not a genetic condition.
Peter
Sprigg of the Family Research Council says that these numerous, rigorous studies of identical
twins have now made it impossible to argue that there is a "gay
gene." If homosexuality were inborn and predetermined, then when one
identical twin is homosexual, the other should be, as well.
Yet
one study from Yale and Columbia Universities found homosexuality common to
only 6.7 percent of male identical twins and 5.3 percent of female identical
twins.
The
low rate of common homosexuality in identical twins – around six percent – is
easily explained by nurture, not nature.
Researchers
Peter Bearman and Hannah Brueckner concluded that environment was the
determining factor. They rejected outright that "genetic influence
independent of social context" as the reason for homosexuality.
"(O)ur results support the hypothesis that less gendered socialization in
early childhood and preadolescence shapes subsequent same-sex romantic
preferences."
"Less
gendered socialization" means, a boy was without a positive father figure,
or a girl was without a positive mother figure.
In
light of the evidence, Sprigg said simply, "No one is born gay."
Psychiatrists
William Byne and Bruce Parsons summarize the science: "Critical review shows the evidence
favoring a biologic theory to be lacking. ... In fact, the current trend may be
to underrate the explanatory power of extant psychosocial models." In
other words, homosexuality is a psychological malady, not something people are
born with.
Some
homosexuals openly admit that their lifestyle is a choice. Lindsay Miller, who
describes herself as a "queer woman," complained in The Atlantic monthly, "I get frustrated
with the veiled condescension of straight people who believe that queers 'can't
help it,' and thus should be treated with tolerance and pity.”
“I
was not born this way,” she wrote. “The life I have now is not something I
ended up with because I had no other options. Make no mistake – it's a life I
chose.”
"It's
time to send the 'born that way' myth to the graveyard of misbegotten ideas,
buried in the plot next to the myth that the sun revolves around the earth,”
Bryan Fischer of the American Family Association has written.
And
yet, the myth continues to gain believers, even among conservatives. According
to the new Gallup poll, Republicans are divided on whether Americans are born
homosexual (40 percent) or whether same-sex orientation is determined by
environmental factors (36 percent).
In
previous polls, a majority of Republicans have said homosexuality is not
innate. Now, according to this poll, they are equally likely to view sexual
orientation as inherent, rather than a choice or a consequence of how people were
raised. In all, 62 percent of Democrats believe homosexuals were born that way.
The
issue affects Republican politicians who, like all politicians, base their
public statements on the polls. Presidential candidate Dr. Ben Carson recently
apologized for merely suggesting people choose to be gay or lesbian. Sen. Marco Rubio has said that, while he does not support same-sex
"marriage," he believes that people are born gay or lesbian.
Fischer
says our society and particularly our presidential candidates should make
policy based on medical and scientific reality, not polls. "If homosexual
behavior is a choice, then our public policy can freely be shaped by an honest
look at whether this behavioral choice is healthy and should be encouraged, or
unhealthy and dangerous and consequently discouraged," he wrote.
There
is no debate over the health threats posed by engaging in the homosexual lifestyle.
Fischer notes that the Gay and Lesbian Medical Association admits homosexuals
are at greater risk of AIDS, substance and alcohol abuse, depression and
anxiety, hepatitis, STDs, and prostate and colon cancer.
"This
is not behavior that any rational society should condone,
endorse, subsidize, reward, promote or sanction in domestic policy or in the marketplace,” Fischer
wrote. “It's a choice, and a bad one at that."
The
Gallup poll, taken May 6-10, also reports a new record high number of Americans
support same-sex "marriage."
The
poll is based on telephone interviews with a random sample of 1,024 adults,
aged 18 and older, living in the United States. The organization says its
margin of sampling error is ±4 percentage points at the 95 percent confidence
level.
