"We all have a sexual orientation and a gender identity"
LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender) people are still living in a disadvantageous society, where they are deprived of human rights. Their community tend to get discriminated by society, getting emphasized of the "difference" and the "needs of differentiation". This discrimination, based on sexual orientation and gender identity, is a serious issue that not only transcends LGBT community, but also affects our society today.
What is sexual orientation?
Sexual orientation is a person's sexual identity in relation to the gender to which they are attracted; the fact of being heterosexual, homosexual, or bisexual. (Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia, Sexual orientation)
In other words, it covers one's sexual desire, feeling, practice, and identification. And it can be towards people of the same of different genders.
What is gender identity?
Gender identity defines as the complex relationship between sex and gender, referring to a person's experience of self expression to social categories of masculinity of femininity. (Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia, Gener identity)
All societies have sets of gender category which serve as the basis of the formation of a person's social identity in relation to other members of society.
The perspectives towards LGBT rights are very controversial. While some believe that all people, regardless of their gender identity, should be able to enjoy their human rights, others believe that LGBT community should not have any right nor opportunity to express themselves with their identities. So far, LGBT people have faced execution, imprisonment, torture, violence or discrimination just because of their sexual orientations and gender identities, and they are still facing these harassments and treatments today. So, let's take these issues in depth and learn about what disadvantages that they have to face and live through, without any human rights and incapability of being part of society (getting their identities accepted by the world). Here are the list of disadvantages and issues that LGBT community is facing today:
HOMELESSNESS
VIOLENCE
40% homeless teens identify as LGBT. Out of those teens, more than 60% kids were kicked out of their families and homes because of their sexual orientation and gender identity, and more than half of them were reported as being survivors of abuse from their families. As a consequence, these young people are vulnerable to mental and physical health issues, leading to unfair criminalization.
LGBT people, especially those of colored ones, tend to face worse issues and disadvantages with their sexual orientation and gender identity. They experience violence (physical) at excessively high rates compared to straight heterosexual people. According to the FBI, "bias against sexual orientation and gender identity accounted for more than 21 percent of hate crimes, with sexually the second most common single-bias category following". Moreover, the National Coalition of Anti-Violence Programs have figured that colored transgender women accounted for 50 percent of homicide victims, where seven colored transgender women were murdered in the United States alone in 2015.
There are significant discrepancy in health care between heterosexual and LGBT people. LGBT people are more likely to report unfulfilled health needs and have difficulty accessing care and insurance than straight people, which give them high percentage of suffering in disease, chronic illness, drug use, mental illness and obesity among the populations. LGBT community has proposed that the distortion of gender identity discrimination in insurance, denial of insurance coverage, and transgender-related health care exclusion keep LGBT people from approaching medically necessary care such as mental health services, surgery and hermone therapy. However, they still haven't received any support from government with providing medical needs and health care, where many LGBT people are suffering from various diseases, illnesses, and lack of pharmaceutical support today.
In spite of the stereotypical popular imagery of wealthy LGBT celebrities, many LGBT people are low income. LGBT people and their disadvantages: employment discrimination, lack of health insurance, homelessness, and other factors were particularly helpless to the impact of economic equality. LG families are more likely to live below the poverty line than straight heterosexual married families and children under LG households are likely to live in poverty compared to children with heterosexual parents. And these statistics are much worse for colored LGBT people.
LGBT adults are treated unfairly by their employers because of their sexuality or gender identity. LGBT people, especially black, have experienced employment discrimination: many experienced harassment or mistreatment, and were fired, nor hired, or denied a preferment.
HEALTH
ECONOMIC JUSTICE
EMPLOYMENT DISCRIMINATION
POVERTY
LGBT workers' economic well-beings were harmfully affected by Anti-LGBT discrimination. This lead to high rates of unemployment, homelessness, poor health and food insecurity. LGBT workers had less opportunity to get jobs and even if they did, they tend to earn less annual profit.
Homosexual couples are two time more likely to live in poverty and LGBT adults are more likely to be poor than heterosexual couples and straight people.