Essay on Theorising Heterosexism for Social Work Education

In the United States and many other countries throughout the world, societal structures have been created to place some in a position of power and others into oppressed positions. These systems often remain unchallenged and force the oppressed into silence for fear of becoming outcasts. These systems affect everyone and can even go as far as making the oppressed internally believe that they are supposed to stay in their second class state. One of these many systems is heterosexism. This paper will cover what heterosexism is, the effects of heterosexism, how heterosexism relates to other forms of oppression, and what can be done to stop heterosexism from being perpetuated. Julie Fish (2008) defines heterosexism, in her article, as the†¦show more content†¦Fish (2008) states some of these assumptions such as same sex couples cannot provide the appropriate gender role models, same sex parents will raise their children to be gay, and children will be bullied because they have parents who are both of the same gender. Brennan, Craig, and Thompson (2012) state in their study that there is a link between gay and bisexual men’s obsession with thinness and muscularity and internalized homophobia. In their study they linked gay and bisexual men to depression, eating disorders, and internalized homophobia. Their experiment was based around the theory that people adopt certain characteristics to have access to privileges in a society and be accepted by the dominant group. Brennan et al.’s (2012) results showed that of the men who showed higher levels of internalized homophobia they also exhibited higher drives for muscularity. This relates to heterosexism because gay and bisexual men are not considered the â€Å"norm.† This is why many gay and bisexual men have this obsession over being thin and muscular, partly because of internalized homophobia. This stems from an overcompensation act to try and be more masculine in an attempt to balance out their sexual orientation. It relates bac k to the idea of acceptance. They are consciously or unconsciously rationalizing that this will make them more accepted whether it is true or not. Olivia Murray (2011) talks about the need for moreShow MoreRelatedGender and Life Chances2598 Words   |  11 Pagesdescribe and evaluate how gender influences the life chances of individuals and groups within Britain today, particularly looking at the socialization process of gender and how particular ideologies of gender roles within different social institutions can create social inequalities through the use of power which can be achieved through justice, and applying different theoretical perspectives of inequality in reference to gender, and looking at those in authority that use their power to legitimize