Transcript Social Inequality Chapter 3 – Status Inequality

Social Inequality
Chapter 5 – Sexual Orientation and
Inequality
Dr. Roderick Graham
Fordham University
Conceptual clarity
Sex
Man and Woman (defined
by sex organs)
Gender
Culturally defined roles
(behavior, clothing styles)
Sexual Orientation
What type of sex and
gender you are attracted
to.
Most people want to make
this assumption:
Sex
Gender
Sexual
Orientation
However, when people do
not fit into this schema,
they are labeled “deviant”,
shunned and stigmatized.
The complexity of sexuality and gender

We expect people to be heterosexual in their sexuality, and
follow the gender roles of being “male/masculine” and
“female/feminine”. Your textbook says that this is the JudeoChristian tendency to use dichotomies.

Sexuality is complex, because people do not always fall into
simple dichotomies. Here is a 2X2 table of sexual orientation.
Heterosexuality
Bisexuality
Asexuality
Homosexuality
Low Opposite Sex Attraction
High Same-Sex
Attraction
Low Same-Sex
Attraction
High Opposite Sex Attraction
The complexity of sexuality and gender

Homosexuals have also developed a series of expected
behaviors (roles) that go along with the status of homosexual

Ironically, transgendered/transexual people are stigmatized by
not only heterosexuals, but also homosexuals, because they do
not fit the norm of homosexuality.

This video clip from the documentary “Gender Rebel” will
illustrate this point…

Despite this complexity, the rest of the chapter, and this
lecture, focuses on homosexuals
How many homosexuals are there?
Public opinions on homosexuality

Like many social issues, Americans are conflicted when
issues of homosexuality are posed


Morally, the majority of the population is opposed to
homosexuality. We contrast an individual’s homosexuality with
our religious beliefs of personal morality.
With respect to civil liberties, Americans see homosexuals as
a social group that is being potentially discriminated against.
Americans tend to be in favor of giving many legal rights
(marriage) to homosexuals.
Public opinions on homosexuality
Table 6.1 – Demographic categories most negative on
morality and civil liberties of homosexuals
Older
Less Educated
Male
From south central part of the United States
Other than White or Black
Persons who lived on farm or in country at age 16
Fundamentalist Protestant in religious affiliation
Public opinions on homosexuality
Stereotypes about gay men
 Feminine
 Emotional
 Security Seeking
 Neat
 Interested in fine arts
 Creative
 High pitched voices
Stereotypes about lesbians
 Independent and
independent minded
 Open and loud
 Stubborn
 Not good for children
Attitudes towards homosexuals are negative in part because people hold
these stereotypes. These stereotypes violate traditional gender roles!!
Homosexuals as a status group

Homosexuals form a status category with low prestige or
social honor.





Lifestyle – they are perceived as having similar occupations,
dress, and preferences.
Tendency to marry within their own ranks - ??
Emphasis on interacting intimately –There are many informal
friendship networks between homosexuals. Also, they are
either stigmatized and shunned and forced to interact only
with other homosexuals
Monopolization of economic opportunities - ??
Emphasis on ownership of certain types of possessions - ??
Homosexuals as status group
3 videos
1.
2.
3.
A recent beating of an openly gay man (Jack Price). This is
being prosecuted as a hate crime. This video shows how low
status groups are low in prestige, and are often stigmatized.
There are serious consequences to being a member of a low
status group.
A public rally by a gay rights group (Generation Q). This is
to show that gays recognize their commonalities, and work
together. In some ways, this is an example of a status group
organizing itself politically.
Just as a bookend, I will show the father of the attacker and
his plea for forgiveness.
Homosexuality Hate Crime Video
Gay Rights Protest Video (Speaker
Marisa Ragonese)
Video of Daniel Rodriguez’s father (one
of the attackers)
Discrimination and legal confusion



One of the biggest controversies in the last 20 years involves
the question of whether homosexuals should be allowed to
marry legally
Marriage confers over 1,000 practical benefits that gays cannot
have. Also, there is a “symbolic” currency in being married,
that gays cannot have.
The winner of the controversy over gay and lesbian marriage
must win battle over framing the issues as one of civil rights or
moral values.
 Those who are pushing for gay marriage argue that this is
discrimination against a social group
 Those who are against gay marriage say that marriage is a
cultural institution that should be kept “sacred”
Discrimination and legal confusion

Title VII of the 1964 civil rights act prohibits employment
discrimination based on “sex”. But what does that mean?

Courts often conflate (treat as the same thing) gender
and sexual orientation, and use the terms sex and gender
interchangeably

This causes confusion and makes it difficult to decide
cases on discrimination
Socioeconomic profile of homosexuals



1.
2.
3.
Hard to measure because homosexuality is stigmatized
and it is difficult to get a representative sample
Also hard to measure because homosexuality can be fluid,
and hard to define
But given this…
Concentrated in urban areas (most gays reside in cities)
More educated people tend to report more
homosexual experiences
Gay men tend to earn less than straight men, but
lesbians earn more than straight women
Socioeconomic profile of homosexuals
4.
5.
Gay men are more likely to be self-employed
Gay men are clustered into a smaller amount of
occupations, with a greater proportion of gay men
working in high status, white collar jobs
Negative consequences of stigmatization

Stigma – a powerfully negative label that changes a
person’s self-concept and self-identity (stigmas are
master statuses). This can lead to…
Suicide
 Homosexual youths are two to three times more likely
than heterosexual youths to attempt suicide
Minority Stress
 Being seen negatively by your community and society can
lead to high stress levels, which in turn affect physical
health
END