Is sexual orientation a choice? The debate on whether sexual orientation is a choice or not has been a controversial topic within the past years. This topic has gotten more attention since the legalization of same sex marriage. There are many different standpoints on the topic, but for the majority there are two different points. The standpoint that you make a conscious effort to conform to one sexuality or that it’s the way you are, and you can’t change who you are. Also others believe in the concept of Nature vs. Nurture. Nature is the environment and the people you were surrounded by throughout your childhood, so through counseling you can change your sexual orientation. Then there is Nurture, which basically states that a person’s sexuality is determined at birth, and that from the moment they were born, if not even in the womb, they were going to be assigned to certain sexuality. One could say it is in your DNA, the way the brain has been wired since day one.
If the philosophy of sexual orientation being a choice is true, then why would Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual youth subject themselves to the humiliation, rejection, harassment, and other such social tortures from their family and peers, from the people who are meant to love and support them. It is a proven fact that Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual youth are 4 times more likely to commit suicide than their heterosexual peers, and the youth who are only questioning their sexuality are 3 times more likely than their peers who are not (“Suicide is the 2nd leading cause of death among young people ages 10 to 24.” – The Trevor Project). Members reject the theory that sexual orientation is a choice bring these points, and many other, up when society asks these questions.
On the other hand, many others believe that sexual orientation is a way of rebelling, not trying to conform to society’s standard, or just simply for the attention it surrounds them with. Others claim that the need to say that sexuality is a choice is a way for them to justify their actions to society and to love ones. However if this is true, then why would most scientists today agree sexual orientation is most likely the result of a complex interaction of environmental, cognitive and biological factors. There is also considerable recent evidence to suggest that biology, including genetic or inborn hormonal factors, play a significant role in a person’s sexuality.
However not all standpoints stating that sexuality is a choice are negative. John Pavlovitz, a pastor and blogger from Wake Forest, North Carolina, simply states that it is a choice but it’s a choice to be the most honest, authentic versions of themselves. Pavlovitz is just one of the many people who conform to the belief. Although this is a very uplifting statement, there is many others in the LGBT community feel as if saying it’s a choice is trying to simplify them and their lives. Also People of the LGBT community speculate homophobia as a contributing factor to the belief that sexuality is a choice. To back up this speculation, many studies have found that heterosexuals who score lower on homophobia scales tend to consider sexual orientation to be biologically determined.
In conclusion sexuality is not a choice, to say that sexuality is a choice would be to simply disregard the fact that, as humans, we still do not know a lot about our brains and how they function. To rule out that sexuality, one of the key things that help us identify who we are as a person, has nothing to do with the way our brain operates would be unfathomable. Sexual orientation is biological in nature, and can’t be changed by learning ways to be attracted to another person. But to conclude, sexuality is not a choice and it is inhumane to believe that it could ever be a conscious choice.