Defining the Wires: Sexual Orientation and Religion 101

Finally, we'll be reviewing two of our (usually) invisible, and nonetheless impactful identities: sexual orientation and religious orientation.  Uneasy bedfellows, you say? Yet, at the heart of nearly every religious tradition is love--for oneself, for the divine, and for others.

 Thus, in that spirit, let's begin by defining

Sexual orientation:

• Or enduring emotional, romantic, and/or sexual attraction toward others.
• Sexual orientation exists along one or more continuums (see bottom right of image below). 
• Common sexual orientations include 
• heterosexuality: attraction to individuals with a gender different from your own
• bisexuality and pansexuality: attraction to individuals with a gender different from your own, and to individuals with the same gender as you
• lesbian or gay sexuality: attraction to individuals with the same gender as your own
• Dr. Alison's note: The term "homosexuality" has negative connotations for many individuals, and was coined during a time when same-sex attraction was considered a medical or psychological pathology. Subsequently, it will not be used in this blog, and readers are encouraged to be thoughtful about their usage of the term, both online and in real life.
• asexuality: the absence of sexual attraction to other individuals, regardless of gender.

Sometimes when people talk about sexual orientation, especially issues pertaining to the queer community, they use a whole string of letters that sounds like alphabet soup. What's that all about? 
LGB, LGBT, LGBTQA, LGBTQIA, and QUILTBAG

• Are some of the main acronyms used to refer to some combination of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, questioning, and allied communities
• LGB = Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual
  
• LGBT = Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender
• LGBTQA = Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Questioning/Queer, and Ally/Asexual
• LGBTQIA = Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Questioning/Queer, Intersex/Intergender, and Ally/Asexual
• QUILTBAG = Queer/Questioning, Intersex/Intergender, Lesbian, Transgender, Bisexual,  Ally/Asexual, and Gay. 

Yes, the alphabet soup-ness of these acronyms can get a little absurd.
Aaaand, the reality of the identity behind each letter is pretty profound.
So hang in there with the absurdity, okay?

• Take-home point 1: there are LOTS of acronyms that refer to various permutations of the queer community
• Take-home point 2: if you're going to use one of these acronyms, make sure you pick the one that actually describes the group/issue you're talking about
• For example, if you want to talk about lesbian, gay, and bisexual issues, but you refer to them as LGBT issues--you're microaggressing against the trans community by "including" them without really including them.
• Pick the acronym that actually describes what you're talking about
  

I've heard people use words like "homophobia" or "homophobic." Is that like arachnophobia? 
Well, sort of. Rather than being afraid of and having prejudice against spiders, people who are homophobic are afraid of, and have prejudice against lesbian, gay, and bisexual people.
Homophobia:

• Therefore, is prejudice, fear, discomfort with or hatred of lesbian, gay, and bisexual people. 
• Homophobia is sometimes so intense that it leads to expressions of hostility and acts of violence.
• Like most forms of oppression, homophobia can occur 
• on an individual or personal level (e.g., an individual person saying or doing homophobic things,) and it can also occur 
• on an institutional or systemic level, as illustrated in the map of US states below wherein state law permits employers to fire employees due to a lesbian, gay, or bisexual orientation.
• Also like most forms of oppression, homophobia can be conscious and/or unconscious

If you think of homophobia and heterosexism as prejudicial cousins, homophobia is the cousin who will go out and say blatantly awful things and/or physically beat people, whereas heterosexism is the cousin who agrees with homophobia, but probably won't physically hurt people, and will say slightly less awful things. 

Heterosexism:

• Therefore, is a system of attitudes, bias, and discrimination in favor of opposite-sex sexuality and relationships. 
• Heterosexism manifests in a myriad of ways in many cultures, and includes:
• Preferential treatment of same-sex couples 
• e.g., tax breaks, the right to marry, hospital visitation rights, shared insurance coverage, and much more
• The assumption that all other people are heterosexual, until proven otherwise
• The belief that heterosexual relationships are the only "natural," "normal" intimate human relationships
• As well as many other attitudes and acts that privilege different-sex couples, and disadvantage same-sex couples
• Like most forms of oppression, homophobia can occur 
• on an individual or personal level (e.g., an individual person saying or doing heterosexist things,) and it can also occur 
• on an institutional or systemic level, (e.g., an institution or an individual person with significant power saying or doing heterosexist things,)
• Also like most forms of oppression, heterosexism can be conscious and/or unconscious

Challenging heterosexism...

In a heterosexist, homophobic culture like US culture, heterosexual individuals are awarded a great number of unearned privileges. This phenomenon is called

Heterosexual privilege: 

• Or, the numerous unearned benefits that most cultures award to heterosexual individuals, including:
• Not needing to "come out" as heterosexual
• The ability to go wherever you want without worrying about being harassed or beaten because of your sexual orientation
• The ability to express affection with your partner in public without worrying about being harassed, beaten, or seen by someone you know and later discriminated against
•  The ability to discuss your romantic relationship with others, and display a picture of your partner at school or work without being accused of "flaunting" or being "blatant" with your sexuality
• A much greater likelihood of seeing your sexuality portrayed in popular media in a depthful, non-stereotypical manner
• A much greater likelihood of others reacting to portrayals of your sexuality in popular media as if it were "normal," rather than "scandalous," "immoral," etc. 
• The ability to legally marry
• The ability to cover your partner under your health insurance plan
• The ability to legally visit your partner in the hospital 
• The ability to file joint taxes with your partner
• And much, much more

Now, we'll move on to a brief study of one of our other important and usually invisible identities: religious orientation.
Religion

• Is generally understood as an organized set of 
• beliefs
• worldviews and 
• cultural traditions 
• that pertain to how a group of people
•  relate to their understanding of the divine and/or universe.
• While specific religions' beliefs and practices vary widely, at the core of the majority of the world's traditions is a message of love for oneself, others, and the divine and/or universe.
• In contrast with spirituality, religion tends to be more social, as well as more formally organized.
• Common world religions include: 

• Hinduism
• Jainism
• Sikhism
• Buddhism
• Judaism
• Christianity
• Islam
• Sufism
• Baha'í faith
• Shintoism
• Yoruban and Dahomey African diaspora (and traditional) religions
• Traditional Native American religions
• European Paganism
  

 Spirituality

• In contrast with religion, spirituality is often understood as a search for and/or connection with the sacred--however one may define sanctity. 
• Though definitions vary widely, many understand spirituality as more personal and individualized, and religion as more collective and organized. 
• Spirituality may be religious, and it may also be non-religious.

In contrast,
Agnosticism

• Refers to the belief that the existence or non-existence of divinity and other religious beliefs cannot be proven or disproven 

Whereas 

Atheism

• Posits a definitive disbelief in divinity and other religious beliefs.

The United States, though lacking a "formal" official religion, is a highly Christian nation, and it is not uncommon for non-Christians to experience
Religious discrimination:

• Or, unfavorable treatment due to someone's religious beliefs or lack of religious belief
• Anyone can have bias or prejudice against someone's religion.  However, as oppression = prejudice + power, in order to oppress or discriminate against someone based upon her/his religion, the oppressor must have significant personal or institutional power. 
• Therefore, in most cases of religious discrimination, the individual doing the discriminating practices the culture's dominant religion.
• Like any form of oppression, religious discrimination can be individual/personal, systemic/institutional, conscious and/or unconscious.

In the United States, systemic religious discrimination manifests in
Christian privilege:

• Or a set of unearned privileges bestowed upon Christians in many cultures, including much of North America, South America, and Europe. 
• Some examples of Christian privilege include:
• Experiencing your religious beliefs as the social norm
• Having off from school or work for your major religious holidays
• Readily finding television, musical, and cinematic portrayals of your religion
• Being represented by politicians who likely practice your faith
• The ability to practice your religion openly and freely without raising suspicion, being questioned, or needing to fear violence
• And much, much more

An all too familiar form of religious discrimination is

Anti-Semitism:

• Or prejudice against, hatred of, and/or discrimination against Jews. 
• As Judaism is a religion, and Jewish heritage can be both a race and an ethnicity, anti-semitism can be both a form of racism and religious discrimination
• Throughout the course of human history, anti-semitism has manifested in innumerable ways, including individual or personal expressions of hatred or discrimination against individual Jews and systemic, organized violent attacks on entire Jewish communities by mobs, law enforcement, or the military.
• Like any form of oppression, anti-semitism can be conscious and/or unconscious. 

Like anti-semitism, Islamophobia is also an alarmingly common form of religious discrimination. 

Islamophobia:

• Is prejudice against, hatred towards, or irrational fear of Muslims. 
• In the last decade and a half in the United States, Islamophobia has significantly intensified, as many Americans do not understand that the terrorists who executed the 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Center and Pentagon practice what most Muslims consider to be a perversion of Islam, as it is so far-removed from orthodox and mainstream Muslim beliefs
• Like any form of oppression, Islamophobia can be individual/personal, systemic/institutional, conscious and/or unconscious. 
• Unlike anti-semitism, however, Islamophobia refers predominantly to a form of religious discrimination; though many Americans conflate Muslim belief with Arab ancestry.

Islamophobic graffiti on a mosque.

Subsequently, Islamophobia is sometimes conflated with, though different from: 

Anti-Arabism

• Or prejudice against, hatred towards, or irrational fear of Arabs. 
• Arabs are generally defined as people whose native language is Arabic, and/or people of Arabic origin, including people who may speak another language, but whose ancestors were native Arabic speakers.
• Historically, many Arabs originated from Northern Africa and Western Asia.
• People who are Arab may practice Islam, and they may also practice one of any other number of religions, including Judaism, Christianity,  and the Druze faith, just to name a few. 
• Like any form of oppression, anti-Arabism can be individual/personal, systemic/institutional, conscious and/or unconscious. 

And that concludes our journey through social justice 101! Next up: the intersection of pop culture, mental health, and social justice.