Research Assignment

For this assignment, I will be talking about LGBT Rights. In the first article, “LGBT
Rights,” by Kenneth Jost, it talks about how the LGBT advocates and conservatives have
continued to battle even thought the Supreme Court had already legalized same-sex marriage
nationwide. Many couples took advantage of this law and started to get married which made a
huge impact; it increased throughout the country. However, for transgender, there was a debate if
students can use the school’s bathrooms based on their gender identity instead of their biological
sex.

One person that was discussed in this article is Gavin Ginn. He is a transgender teen who
sued his high school for the right to use the boy’s bathroom and locker facilities. They created a
law known as Title IX which requires schools to allow transgender students to use the bathroom
based on their gender identity. In addition, they also extended federal anti-discrimination laws to
protect LGBT individuals in their work place and in housing. Unfortunately, the LGBT
community was upset due to Trump banning transgender individuals from serving in the
military. Three of his Cabinet appointees, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, Attorney General Jeff
Sessions and Education Secretary Betsy DeVos decided to discontinue the pro-LGBT. I do not
agree with these changes that have been made over the year. They should have the right to serve
for their country or the right to use the bathroom where they feel comfortable.

In the second article, “International Journal of Public Opinion Research,” by Amy Becker
talks about how over the past few decades, scholars have devoted their attention towards
studying evolving public attitudes towards the LGBT civil rights issues which includes support
for open service in the military, same-sex parent adoption, employment non-discrimination, civil
unions, and same-sex marriage. In a research, it was shown that women and those with higher
levels of educations tend to be more supportive of marriage equality and other related issues.
However, in the third article “Marriage Rights and LGBTQ Youth: The Present and Future
Impact of Sexuality Policy Changes,” by Michelle A. Marzullo and Gilbert Herdt state that
studies have noticed a changing attitude towards marriage rights in the United States but there is
a total of fifty-five percent of Americans that view same-sex as bad or wrong which straight sex
is seen more of a blessing.
 Overall, The LGBTQ Americans want to have the same opportunities as anyone in the
states. They want to be safe in their own community without being discriminated, harassed, or
assaulted. In addition, students want t feel safe in public schools without being involved in
violence or bullying. Not only that but, they want to be able to take care of their loved ones but
there are certain laws that prevent them from being able too. In conclusion, I do not agree with
how things turned out for them because even till this day they are still trying to right for their
rights.
 Citations
Jost, K. (2017, November 16). LGBT rights. CQ researcher. Retrieved from
http://library.cqpress.com/ (April 12 2018)
Becker, A. (2014, September 1). International Journal of Public Opinion Research, Volume 26,
Issue 3, Pages 342–354, https://doi.org/10.1093/ijpor/edu003 (April 12 2018)
Marzullo, M. A. and Herdt, G. (2011), Marriage Rights and LGBTQ Youth: The Present and
Future Impact of Sexuality Policy Changes. Ethos, 39: 526-552. doi:10.1111/j.1548-
1352.2011.01204.x (April 12 2018)