You will prepare and submit a term paper on Suicidality among Homosexuals. Your paper should be a minimum of 1500 words in length.

You will prepare and submit a term paper on Suicidality among Homosexuals. Your paper should be a minimum of 1500 words in length. In particular, homosexuality has been accredited with the rising number of teenage suicides in the contemporary American society. For example, the 2001 data on American suicides ranked homosexuality third in the causes of death among American teenagers between the ages of fifteen to twenty years (McIntosh, 2003). This high number of suicides resulting from homosexuality may be blamed on the society’s view and definition of homosexuality.&nbsp. What is homosexuality? Homosexuality was defined differently across most cultures of the world. This is because different cultures have the divergent meaning of the term and in some, the term is non-existent. However, the term may be broadly defined as the sexual behavior or attraction among persons of the same sex. That is, men are sexually attracted to men and women attracted to fellow women. Homosexuality, in most ancient cultures, was considered to be against the normal human behavior. It was thus seen as a crime against nature and an extension of paganism, which was then considered a serious crime due to the threat it posed towards religion. However, although times have changed and the society evolved, some of the ancient beliefs on homosexuality have not changed. The most dominant view in society is the conservative view, which is to the effect that, “Homosexuality is an aberration, the orientation is a disorder, and the behavior is pathological” (Shagor, 2005). It is this view of the society that has been controversial and has influenced the various stereotypes and beliefs surrounding homosexuality. This is because the view portrays members of the LBTG as queer and social misfits. The next part of this paper will, therefore, examine these stereotypes and popular beliefs as the grounds of suicidal tendencies among the LBTG group. Suicidality among the LBTG group Leading scholars, such as Campos (2005, p.20), have identified suicidality to be the greatest basis of death among the LBTG members. He asserts that most of these deaths are high in homosexual teenagers as opposed to their heterosexual counterparts. This position is resonated by the Suicide Prevention Resource Centre of the United States, which found that homosexual youth are more likely to commit suicide in the ration of 1.5 to 7 times more than their heterosexual counterparts (Sieccan Newsletter, 2009, p.223). The convergent views expressed by the aforementioned researchers portray the homosexuals as a minority group in need of protection and care by the society. The largest contributors to homosexual suicides are the popular beliefs about homosexuality envisaged by the society. For the majority of people in society, homosexuality is viewed as a queer behavior that is shunned by the society. Often, this notion leads to a sense of guilt and uneasiness among teenage homosexuals who are confronted by the challenge of seeking self-identity. The resulting guilt and perception make the LBTG members view themselves as social misfits, who have no vital role to play in society.