Introduction
In the 21st century, the world has become much more open and democratic than ever before. Most countries in the world are democratic, and even most authoritarian governments try to simulate democracy. LGBT rights also underwent significant changes: from the repressed minority in the 20th century and the centuries before, gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender people started to express themselves and enjoy personal rights. However, some countries, such as many Asian and African ones, still build their politics on traditional, conservative, and religious values which prohibit LGBT rights. Some countries, such as China or Russia, ignore the problem of LGBT people, leaving them unprotected in the homophobic societies of these countries. Therefore, the evolution of gay rights was indeed substantial but certainly not sufficient: LGBT people still suffer a lot worldwide, and additional progress is necessary.
A Short History of Gay Rights Evolution
To understand the position on the evolution of gay rights, let us review the historical perspective of LGBT people. In ancient times, same-sex relations were present in many cultures, including Ancient Greece, and were neither persecuted nor particularly protected (Morris, 2019). Unlike that, traditional Christianity and Islam forbid it as a pervert and abnormal. As these religions dominate most of the world, homophobic views have been persistent for all recent centuries (Page & Yip, 2021). Therefore, as monotheistic religions flourished in the Middle Ages, homosexuality became illegal in all places where they became dominant.
The situation began to change in the 20th century when more and more LGBT people started to strive for their rights. Many creative people of the 20th century, such as American poet Allen Ginsberg, were openly gay and participated in gay activism (Morris, 2019). LGBT people have organized gay prides since the 1970s regularly in various countries, originally as protests and then as mass celebrations (Sherkat, 2019). Slowly, in the United States and other Western countries, gay rights were adopted, protecting them from discrimination and allowing them to form same-sex marriages (Garretson, 2018). Other countries, especially Latin America, started to defend gay rights as well, and even Christianity in these countries became much more tolerant and gay-friendly (Amaya & González, 2019; Sherkat, 2019). Businesses worldwide created inclusive and tolerant working conditions, which were more ethical and efficient, less toxic and aggressive (Hossain et al., 2019). Therefore, the situation with gay rights in the 21st century is much better than before: anti-discriminatory laws and freedom of expression allow them to live as they want in many countries.
Along with that, homophobia is still prevalent in the world. Conservative, religious, and far-right movements in Western countries promote homophobia and strive for the supremacy of heterosexual people, which is called heterosexism (Edenborg, 2021; Hermansson et al., 2020). In more than 70 countries worldwide, same-sex relations are illegal, and in some of them, the death penalty or long-term imprisonment is enforced (Amaya & González, 2019). Even more countries with legal homosexuality, from Poland and Russia to Indonesia and Pakistan, have various religious groups which openly blame gays and threaten them, and some politicians openly support these groups (Chowaniec et al., 2021; Edenborg, 2021; Page & Yip, 2021). Other countries, such as China, do not persecute gay people, but neither protects them, leaving them vulnerable to discrimination and homophobia in Chinese society. Before summarizing that the evolution of gay rights is still insufficient, despite all advances, all arguments pro and against the evolution’s success will be presented.
Arguments Pro: The Evolution of Gay Rights
To see that there were at least some essential advances in gay rights, one can consider that most countries in the world have legal same-sex relationships. Human rights are a hot topic in the modern world, meaning that the progress of gay rights continues and will probably become much stronger in the near future (Schimmel, 2019). Even traditional homophobic religions, such as Catholic Christianity, have started to accept gays as normal people, and even Islam in some liberal countries has become more tolerant (Page & Yip, 2021). In the United States, support for same-sex marriages has risen more than two-fold since the beginning of the 21st century, from 20-40% to 60-70%, especially among religious people, as Figure 1 shows (Sherkat, 2019). One of the most important indicators is businesses, which is the crucial influencer in the modern world: many of them strive to organize an inclusive and tolerant workplace, as they are more efficient (Hossain et al., 2019). Therefore, the world has become much more LGBT-friendly, which is undoubtedly good news for gays.
The widespread studies of LGBT people around the world are another point. Various research groups analyze gay people in different religions and societies, including homophobic ones, such as traditional Islam and Christianity (Page & Yip, 2021). While LGBT research is still mostly available only in less homophobic countries and in the English language, the number of LGBT-related research has constantly been rising during the last decades (Amaya & González, 2019). Social changes and their contributing factors, such as the 1969 Stonewall riots in the United States, are actively studied, and their consequences are generally considered positive by researchers (Garretson, 2018). They are essential, as scientists can analyze and understand gay people using sociological and psychological methods, obtaining helpful knowledge.
Arguments Against: Discrimination and Homophobia
Even taking all the advances mentioned in the previous sections, there are significant arguments that pose challenges to the supposed progress in LGBT rights. The evolution of gay rights created the reaction of conservative and religious people, for example, in Poland and the U.S. They are unwilling to accept the widespread of gay people, thinking that they are abnormal (Chowaniec et al., 2021; Hermansson et al., 2020). So-called traditional values became the political force, and some countries issued anti-gay discriminatory laws in the 21st century, such as Russian Federation (Edenborg, 2021). Many places on Earth have become endangered by local conflicts, where extremist groups severely violate human rights, and LGBT people are especially at risk there (Schimmel, 2019). Homophobia is a strong obstacle to fulfilling gay rights; unlike laws that protect or discriminate against LGBT people, it is a social force that cannot be easily regulated. Summarizing that, one can see those anti-gay movements are persistent in various parts of the world, severely endangering their life.
The situation is much worse in some other parts of the world: no LGBT rights development is present. There are still countries, primarily Muslim, where gays can undergo capital punishment just for their orientation, and most of their societies support such a situation (Page & Yip, 2021). 13 countries in total punish same-sex relations by death, and they illegal in 71 countries worldwide, punishable by prison (Amaya & González, 2019). Therefore, it is too early to talk about successful progress if so many places on Earth are dangerous for gays’ existence.
Summary
Therefore, one can see that the evolution of gay rights in the 21st century is not sufficient. Several arguments support the evolution: countries with anti-discriminatory laws, the general decrease of homophobic sentiments in the world, and the growing number of LGBT-related research. However, arguments against the evolution’s success are much stronger, as they are actually for various parts of the world, while gay rights are improving only in some countries, primarily European and American ones.
One cannot deny that the development of human rights was prominent in the late 20th and 21st centuries. However, the evolution cannot be called entirely successful when there are countries with the death penalty for homosexuality, and homophobic rhetoric is widespread worldwide (Chowaniec et al., 2021; Edenborg, 2021; Hermansson et al., 2020). When in one part of the world, two gays celebrate marriages; in another region, a similar couple can be broken down by officials and executed or tortured in prisons (Amaya & González, 2019; Page & Yip, 2021). Even in countries where gay rights are better, they are endangered by quite strong homophobic movements.
The hope is for the future of LGBT movements and research, which can solve the mentioned problems in the following years and decades. While the evolution is insufficient, the situation was much worse in the 20th century or centuries before, when homosexuality was prohibited and severely punished. The situation is far from ideal now, with limiting protection for gays and persistent homophobia, but it is slowly improving.
Conclusion
Gay rights in the 21st century are much more developed than in the 20th century. There are countries where they can enjoy all personal rights, same-sex marriages, and protection from discrimination. Businesses, social organizations, and even traditional religions have become open and tolerant of same-sex marriages and LGBT people. However, the evolution was generally insufficient, as most countries still do not provide enough protection for gays. In some countries, they are persecuted, and in much more of them, they undergo severe challenges, such as the inability to marry or ask the police for protection. Homophobic movements are present in almost all parts of the world, and in countries like Russia and Indonesia, they can openly threaten gay people’s death. Politicians often use homophobic sentiments to rise in power instead of protecting their citizens. Therefore, the situation with gay rights in the world is still far from good and should be further improved.
References
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