Let’s say I’m gay ““ born gay, still gay,
living gay. And let’s say I really want to be straight.
To continue on our hypothetical theme, let’s say
there’s a way for me to do exactly what I want ““
let’s say there’s a hormone patch that could provide me
with the exact opportunity I desire.
Recently there was an article published in London’s Sunday
Times that claimed scientists had been conducting experiments to
turn gay sheep straight.
While this claim doesn’t seem to be entirely true ““
according to responses to the article by the scientists, they were
searching more for a biological reason behind sexual orientation
than a cure for it ““ the story has spread.
What the Sunday Times article brought up that was interesting,
false or not, was the eventual possibility of a hormone patch that
could prevent homosexuality.
They meant the patch to be worn by a pregnant woman to ensure
that her baby would be born straight, but I can’t see why
this sort of patch, if a possibility, couldn’t be used by
mature adults wanting to change their sexual orientation from gay
to straight, or straight to gay.
As I said, it’s an interesting idea. And, I think, a good
one.
Unsurprisingly, the general response has been negative ““
one shouldn’t tamper with sexual orientation; what if this
leads to people changing the sexual orientation of their child
before it is born, etc.
With respect to changing the sexual orientation of an unborn
child, I agree that it’s wrong.
And the rest of these responses aren’t without reason.
People who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender are
discriminated against and have to face certain obstacles on a daily
basis that people who consider themselves as straight don’t
have to put up with.
But that doesn’t mean that, had this research in fact been
looking into how to turn gay sheep straight, or into the
possibility of a hormone patch to change someone’s sexual
orientation, it would have been a bad thing.
After all, we live in a country that promises freedom of choice.
Our choices are obviously limited ““ there are some things we
definitely can’t change about ourselves, such as race.
But for everything else, it’s supposed to be our right to
be able to choose. Shouldn’t we be enhancing this freedom? If
technology can provide us with ever more choices, shouldn’t
we be jumping for joy?
Maybe it’s scary that there’s a possibility you
could change something that’s an integral part of your
identity.
But people change things that were created by their genes or
other biological factors all the time. People who believe they are
a different gender from what their body dictates can choose to
undergo a sex change, which often involves hormone treatment.
Other people undergo plastic surgery. They get their breasts
enlarged, their tummies tucked or their noses reshaped.
Obviously what some might consider a cure for homosexuality
might cause some problems. People might assume that if
there’s a way for everyone to be straight, there’s no
reason for anyone to be gay.
But that’s not a question of whether or not such
treatments should exist. That’s a problem with people not
respecting the fact that others may not have the same sexual
lifestyles as they do.
And that brings up a point Ronni Sanlo, the director of the LGBT
Campus Resource Center, made clear: If people are going to be
researching how to be turning gay sheep or people straight, they
need to be concurrently researching how to turn straight sheep or
people gay.
“If they’re suggesting something that works in both
directions, then they are on to something,” Sanlo said.
Besides, gender and sexual orientation are fluid ““ you can
feel one way one day and one way another. And it’s no
one’s business but your own. If you aren’t biologically
predisposed to feel a certain way, but want to be, why
shouldn’t you?
Believe it or not, there are people out there ““ myself
included ““ who choose to identify as LGBT. As opposed to
feeling as if we were born attracted to a certain gender, we make
the choice to have sexual relations with both, or only with people
of our own gender.
Obviously that’s not a general statement, and obviously it
can also be a combination of choice and biological predisposition,
but it shouldn’t be seen as a less valid reason to be
LGBT.
In fact, according to an article in The Economist, the idea of
being able to choose anything is starting to erode. In this
instance, modern neuroscience is slowly developing a model of what
it means to make a choice, and whether or not we actually have the
power to control our lives.
Personally, I think the possibility that humans aren’t
responsible for anything is a much scarier thought than a hormone
treatment that could change my sexual orientation.
But maybe that’s just me.