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Ilexa Axelrod
Miss David
HELA 10
23 February 2016
Sexual Orientation: Universal Equality
Regardless of where someone is born, he or she should be granted equal rights.
According to the United Nations, everyone is entitled to basic human rights, such as no
discrimination against race, religion, language, and sex. One thing the committee did not include
was universal freedom of sexual preference. Granted, published in 1948, things have changed
significantly. In 2015, the United States Supreme Court had a 5-4 ruling in favor of gay
marriage on Friday, June 26th, which deemed it legal in all fifty states. Unfortunately, making
homosexual marriage legal in America has not yet completely solved universal issues. Everyone
around the world should be able to love his or her significant other freely and without
discrimination. One cannot change his or her sexuality, heterosexual and homosexual
relationships are indeed similar, and homosexuals should be able to express their true identity.
Those who love the same sex discover that at a young age, and it is not something they can
outgrow.
Classifying oneself as gay is not a disease, nor is it wrong or unethical way of life. Sexual
orientation is not a personality trait, but it defines the group of people in which one is likely to
find the satisfying and fulfilling romantic relationships that are an essential component of
personal identity for many people, (Understanding Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity).
Humans do not merely wake up one day and decide their attraction. There is an intuition where
young people know who they want to share times of happiness and sadness. On the other hand,

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the United States Conference of Bishops responded to the legalization of gay marriage after the
Supreme Court ruling by calling it profoundly immoral and unjust (Freedman). It is
unfortunate that some people do not understand that being gay is not a choice. Understanding
that people are born homosexual is the first step in achieving universal homosexual acceptance.
Being gay is an orientation, not a blatant decision, and everyone should be permitted to love
freely.
Black and white, male and female, heterosexual and homosexual: these classifications are
ways to describe someone. Some question why heterosexuals and homosexuals do not have that
universal opportunity. Lawyers Theodore Olson and David Boies explain that living a
homosexual life is similar to a heterosexual life, whereas they have lives and homes together,
they are raising children, they have jobs, they pay bills, [and] they run errands (Olson and
Boies). These daily tasks the lawyers describe are tasks that all humans share no matter their
race, gender, or sexuality. On the other hand, some feel that heterosexuals are superior to
homosexuals just as some white people are supremacists. These ideas are how a lot of people
used to think. The fact of the matter is that a person is a person, disregarding his or her race,
gender, or sexuality. It should be a human obligation to accept others attractions even if it is
foreign to his or her morals. Both relationships, heterosexual and homosexual are very similar.
Accepting others is the first step in achieving universal equality for sexual orientation.
Not discriminating against gays and lesbians allows them to be their true selves. In a
Gallup survey, the company asked people in 124 countries if the area in which they live is a good
or bad place for homosexuals (Hiatt). The results are incredible. Only 71% of people in the
United States feel lesbians and gays are accepted (Hiatt). These statistics are surprising, because
America is not even in the top ten countries for the acceptance. Other nations like Pakistan and

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Indonesia have acceptance rates for homosexuals being between two and three percent (Hiatt).
The reason these percentages are not higher is due to culture and religion. In Pakistan, 96.3% of
inhabitants are Muslim and in Indonesia, 88.2% are Muslim (Pew Research Center). Major world
religions like Christianity, Judaism, and Islam teach peace and the acceptance of their neighbors.
It is so important that everyone in each community around the world feel accepted, for everyone
wants to show their true identity.
A universal goal for all humans is to be accepted by their families, peers, communities,
and countries. Living in a safe environment is important, so people can truly express themselves.
Countries like Pakistan and Indonesia are way behind other first-world countries regarding the
acceptance of lesbians and gays. Men and women should most definitely not feel obligated to
fully accept homosexuals, for that is inevitable. There will always be those few people that are
the disagreers; however, it is the understanding that homosexuals do not have a choice.
Homosexual lives are not different from heterosexual relationships. Homosexuals should have
the right to be accepted and express themselves. Homosexuals should have universal equality.

Works Cited
Freedman , Sameul G. Push Within Faiths for Same-Sex Marriage Gets Little Attention. SIRs,
25 July 2015. Web. 17 Feb. 2016.<http://sks.sirs.com/cgi-bin/hst-article-display?
id=SKS45045-0-8656&artno=0000374916&type=ART&shfilter=U&key=religions that

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oppose homosexuality&title=Push Within Faiths for Same-Sex Marriage Gets Little
Attention&res=Y&ren=N&gov=N&ink=N&ic=N>
Hiatt, Fred. An International War on LGBT People. Washington Post. 13 Jul. 2015: A.15. SIRS
Issues Researcher. Web. 09 Feb. 2016. <http://www.pewforum.org/2009/10/07/mappingthe-global-muslim-population/>.
Olson, Theodore B., and David Boies. The Marriage Debate: Gays Deserve Equal Rights. Wall
Street Journal. 26 Mar. 2013: A.11. SIRS Issues Researcher. Web. 09 Feb. 2016.
The Universal Declaration of Human Rights | United Nations. UN News Center. UN, 10 Dec.
1948. Web. 17 Feb. 2016. <http://www.un.org/en/universal-declaration-human-rights/>
Understanding Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity. American Psychological Association.
Web. 17 Feb. 2016. <http://www.apa.org/helpcenter/sexual-orientation.aspx>.