Gay and Lesbian Liberation Essay example -- Homosexuality

Generations ago, the United States was a country of the male wardrobe. Today's movements for the rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community are leveraging the existence of more globalized and open systems. Besides, the promotion of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender population have been acknowledged through smart partnerships within conventional, political and economic scene, while the males and heterosexuals are still pervasive. This paper will focus on the oppression of the LGBT population denying their human rights. However, at the same token showing their struggle to ultimately be accepted in society to some degree will be addressed as well. The gay and Lesbian liberation movement presented the later involvement of the bisexual and transgendered groups. This was considered a significant social force that introduced the reality of this culture during the last several decades. Fortunately, the individuals who had been profoundly isolated from traditional sources gained some support. The sources entail family members, friends and communities. Unfortunately, the LGBT population encountered harsh treatment by their oppressors, as many people were against their way of life. Many of these LGBT individuals were terrorized by other individuals, which also resulted in death. A controversial issues regarding the LGBT population, particularly gays and lesbian has been their privilege to be married. Homosexuality was decriminalized in most states in the Americas. However, homosexuality remains criminally punishable in Guyana, to Belize and part of Caribbean islands (in Jamaica, in Dominica in Saint Lucia, in Barbados, in St. Vi ncent and the Grenadines in Grenada, in Trinidad and Tobago to Antigua a... ...tudies from 1978–2000. Scandinavian Journal of Psychology vol. 43 pp. 335–351 Bawer, Bruce (1993) A Place at the Table: The Gay Individual in American Society. New York: Touchstone Books Boswell, J. (1994). Same-sex unions in pre-modern Europe. New York: Villard. Dexter, P. (2003). Countering the counterfeit: A case for traditional marriage. . Miller, A. V. (2000). â€Å"Our own voices: a directory of lesbian and gay periodicals, 1890s-2000s†, Canadian Gay and Lesbian Archives: http:/ / www.clga.ca One, Inc. v. Olesen, 355 U.S. 371 Rasmussen, M. and Kenway, J. (2004), â€Å"Queering the youthful cyberflaneur Globalizing identities, consuming queers: Issues in education and globalization†, Journal of Gay and Lesbian Issues in Education vol. 2 no. (1). pp. 47–63. Streitmatter, R. (1995). â€Å"Unspeakable: The rise of the gay and lesbian press in America†, Boston: Faber & Faber

The Grapes of Wrath

The movie â€Å"The Grapes of Wrath† I watched recently is the classic adaptation of John Steinbeck’s novel written and published in 1939 only one year before the movie was released. When the movie production was approved the director John Ford and his crew were able to accomplish a major task and finish the project without getting involved in the conflict with labor unions what was very important since many members of the crew belonged to them. The script which is based on Steinbeck’s book adopted a very specific dialect, the language spoken by the villagers living in rural Oklahoma so the authenticity impression was preserved. The movie presents the times of the Great Depression in the American Mid West and West coasts. This was a tough era of American history that got the historically accurate documentation and John Ford’s movie shows us perfectly the experience of many people those days – farmers and their families, drifters and strikers. For many Americans who watched the movie in the theaters in the big cities it was not easy to find out how hard and stressful it was for the people living in the country to be forced out of the lands they were working on. Here the director introduces us to the family of poor farmers from Oklahoma Dust Bowl and their struggling during the tough times of the economic crisis. While watching the movie I observed the contrast between the representatives of the lower class and the wealthy landowners who take an advantage of the unfortunate circumstances. From the events presented I’ve learned that the economic crisis and the advancing technology which was used to farm the land were responsible for drastic and extreme changes which were imposed on thousands of people against their own will. All the farmers’ families which for many generations made the living out of their farms in the short period of time received the notifications demanding to move out and abandon the properties which they were residing at. Obviously it was not their choice and the decision was made on their behalf without giving them the alternative opportunities. The main characters in the movie are the members of Joad’s family who are not only dealing with the problems inside of their family but also with the basis of their existence which is endangered. Those poor people understand very well that when fighting all the odds the only solution is to stay together and rely on each other and when facing the unpleasant reality they decide to remain as a family while entering the new chapter of their lives. In order to find a solution to their problems Joad’s family decides to embark on the journey to California. They have high hopes and strong beliefs that if they will get there, their situation will change for better, they will be able to find jobs and as a result will settle in their new home. On the way to their destination they experience many unexpected events which they have to deal with as they appear. They loose two members of their family and while staying at the camps for the similar migrants they learn about the sad reality which was awaiting them. It appeared that all the information they have been provided before they left Oklahoma were not exactly true and the land owners were trying to earn profits by using the unfair labor practices. Being fully aware of the desperate conditions the owners of the large farms offer low wages jobs and exploit all those hired to work on their lands. The new comers were not welcomed and treated with very suspicious manners. The local residents who were afraid of losing their own source of income were acting very unfriendly and openly demonstrated their opposition. People like Joad’s family while forced to stay in the camps and awaiting the potential employment were treated by local authorities like trouble makers. All those who tried to stand up for their rights were considered difficult and wrongly accused of trouble causing. Rich and wealthy class representatives were simply misusing the power of the local authorities in order to protect their own interest and increase the potential profits. Whoever was brave enough to disagree with those kinds of methods was considered as a threat and forced to leave or had to face the mistreatment and abuse. While majority of migrating families were subjected to the hardship and constant struggling, the smaller number of this group were lucky enough to find the temporary accommodations provided by the Federal authorities as a form of social assistance during the economic depression. Once they were able to reach such facilities they were offered decent and reasonable housing with the basic sanitary installations. The life in those places was organized by the rules which campers could set up so all the residents were treated with respect and there was no tolerance for any form of abuse. However some of the local land owners did not like the situation and were trying to sabotage the camp. Quite often those government managed facilities were subjected to the organized attempts of purposely initiated disturbances which will give the arguments to the local authorities to act while â€Å"preserving law and order†. It should be noticed that even tough it was not the director’s intention the conditions showed and the form of management in those camps succeeded in building up the reputation of the Government and helped in recognizing efforts directed towards continuous improvement during the crisis. The democratic methods which were giving all the residents the right to protect their status were successfully maintaining the stabilized life while staying within the borders of the camp. Even the police authorities were not allowed to enter without the warrant. Many residents quickly realized how fragile and valuable it is for them to continue preventing the established order in the camp so they could organize the system of the comities which were overseeing all the key aspects of every day living conditions. Under those circumstances surviving the difficult times until the employment opportunities appear was much more acceptable and helped to build the confidence in the better future. The movie definitely proves that people while facing major difficulties have much higher chances of prevailing if they help each other and stay together instead of resisting and fighting those problems just on their own. Even the strongest and most determined attempts to resist and fighting the reality by one single person will not last long and at the end will not be considered successful. The Joad’s family proved to themselves that together they can manage to survive and use the difficulties which they went through as the learning experience. By using the combination of wisdom and wise assumptions together with good will and honest intentions they were able to help each other in the process of the decisions making. As we all now go through the inconveniences and carry the burden of struggling economy, while watching the movie we can relate in some certain way to the presented story. We are fully aware that unfortunately seventy years later there are many Americans who do have to find answers to resolve their problems and react to the drastic changes which the economy imposed on them. As Casy, the former preacher perfectly summarizes his view when performing the funeral rites by saying: â€Å"I wouldn’t pray just for an old man that’s dead, ‘cause he’s all right. If I was to pray, I’d pray for folks that’s alive and don’t know which way to turn†. The fact that the American Academy of Motion Pictures nominated John Ford’s movie was one of the reasons why even the President of the USA Franklin D. Roosevelt was present there and gave the speech which consisted of comments regarding the movie unique character. For someone like me whose knowledge of the United States modern history is not so deep I found the movie as being very educating and presenting Americans’ lives during the Great Depression from a different perspective. Comparing to the recent production, the â€Å"Cinderella Man† I found quite few similarities and issues which were particularly important however the director John Ford is not trying to create a fairy tale but instead is exposing the dark side in which both the rules of economy and human nature compete with each other in the most important fight as the only possible way of surviving without loosing the human values such a dignity and pride. We can say that the main characters, their interactions and behavior even if originated from the natural instincts of human beings slowly but steady helped them to built up the resistance and eventually made them stronger than they were ever before. Just like Russell Crowe in the â€Å"Cinderella Man† was given a second chance and did not waste it but succeeded in his journey to the victory on the boxing ring, Joad’s family under the spiritual leadership of Tom’s mother proudly emerged out of all difficulties and remained faithful about awaiting them much better future. In my opinion the history of this country taught us a very valuable lesson which proved that even the Great Depression was not able to destroy the strong American spirit and discourage people from using their skills and joined efforts to help each other in the times of need. People need to believe that the tough times will end and they will be able to enjoy living again. Nothing motivates people in need to take an action and engage in many long term efforts better than having hope and faith that the better future is in their hands, that nothing else can help them better than their own determination.

Physiological Basis of Human Behavior Essay

Heredity is the passing of traits to offspring from its parents or ancestor. This is the process by which an offspring cell or organism acquires or becomes predisposed to the characteristics of its parent cell or organism. Through heredity, variations exhibited by individuals can accumulate and cause some species to evolve. The study of heredity in biology is called genetics, which includes the field of epigenetics. Both hereditary and hormones affect human behavior but in different ways. It is a combination of these two factors which results in â€Å"normal† behavior. Heredity and hormones work together to influence behavior. Heredity includes genetics, behavioral genetics, and evolutionary psychology; while hormones are produced by the endocrine system, in concert with the nervous system. Hormones switch on behaviors. Looking at the relationships between hormones and heredity provides a complete picture of the effects of heredity on human behavior. Genetics is the study of how traits are passed from one generation to the next through genes, which are found on chromosomes. They are a small part of DNA, and they direct particular traits of groups of traits. They are the essence of a human being, their make-up, and they are unmodifiable. They are carried by tiny threadlike bodies called chromosomes. They vary in size and shape and they come in pairs. Genes are responsible for the development of the nervous and endocrine systems; therefore, genes can influence the chance of a certain behavior occurring in a certain set of circumstances. They are indirect to behavior, while hormones are direct. Genes are most often considered in a physiological manner, as in whether one is predisposed to being tall or short, or being blonde haired or blue eyed. Behavior genetics are the other side of genetics, more specifically how genes can be considered to pass on psychological traits rather than physiological ones. Each species has a constant number of chromosomes that never varies, weight, height, skin color and many other traits are produced by the interaction of several genes. This process is called polygenic inheritance, and each of the genes contributes individually to the overall effect. As the chromosomes carries the genes, so does the bloodstream, hormones.