Can parents make their kids gay?

1. 66

   Innuentendreposted 12 years ago

   Can parents make their kids gay?
   
   Is it responsible parenting to intentionally influence a child to be homosexual, or is it homophobic to disagree with this practice?
   
   

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2. 96

   SmartAndFunposted 12 years ago

   LOL. No, a parent cannot "make" or "turn" a child gay, any more than than a parent can "make" or "turn" a child straight. Sexual orientation is innate. It is not a choice, it just is what it is. It is not manufactured.
   
   However, I do think it is irresponsible to attempt to influence a child's sexual orientation. Kids need sex education from their parents, but should not be "taught" to be straight or gay. Parents need to show their kids that they love them no matter who they are or what they're like and they they don't want them to be someone they're not. Guide your child to be smart, giving and responisble, but leave sexual orientation out of it. It will develop naturally, and there's really not anything you can do about it, anyway.

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   1. 66

      Innuentendreposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      I see SmartAndFun, by doing so, you preserve the child's ability to choose sexual orientation on their own.

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   2. 96

      SmartAndFunposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      No, innuentendre, that is not what I wrote. I do not believe we choose our sexual orientation any more than we choose our eye color. It simply develops.

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3. 60

   win-winresourcesposted 12 years ago

   Hi Innuentendre-
   
   The literature has mountains of evidence on both sides of this discussion.  In many cases, unfortunately, the bias of the investigator is driving the findings.
   
   I believe there is a combined impact of both nature (perhaps a genetic predisposition) and nurture (environment) on the developing individual that leads to their sexual orientation.
   
   This said, there is an interesting argument that is generating more thought.  Since a homosexual union, by definition, will not produce offspring, and thereby not pass along any genetic material, it is difficult to see how homosexuality survives over the centuries unless you believe that homosexuality is less nature (genetics) and more nurture (environmental influences).
   
   Hot topic, I'm sure there will be vehement responses.
   
   -DW

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   1. 66

      Innuentendreposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      Hello win-winresourses. Social paradigms are shifting currently, as norms regarding parenting and sexual orientation evolve. Touchy subject for sure. PWIV

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   2. 96

      SmartAndFunposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      In recent years scientists have found a predisposition to being gay is caused by exposure to certain hormones inutero, which makes it not necessarily genetics or the way a child is parented, but rather the environment inside the womb.

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4. 66

   Innuentendreposted 12 years ago

   I acknowledge new norms yet obviously my knowledge is limited. I understand that homosexuality may be genetically predisposed although up to this point many regard it as a negative like a predisposition for obesity or bad breath. As the status quo changes and scientific data expands who is to say how a parent can and should raise their child. ie. A gay couple deciding to raise their children in an environment conducive to choosing their own sexuality or even biased towards homosexuality may have been taboo in the past but it has traditionally been common for straight couples to raise their children to be specifically straight. I agree that sexual identity is a big part of who we are as individuals but perhaps beyond a parents influence. I want to know is it responsible for a parent to raise their child to be gay and is it homophobic to disagree with this practice. To disagree is to acknowledge a flaw in current and progressive logic. How can you disagree with something that is truly healthy and normal without attributing the position to an underlying prejudice? Should we protect a child's right to choose their own orientation or does a parent have the right to rear their kid towards a specific position?
   
   I meant to clarify, not misquote SmartAndFun! If child can be turned gay can it be considered responsible parenting to do so Iburmaster? Can't argue with science win-winresources.. Thanks for the perspectives!

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   1. 96

      SmartAndFunposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      That's ok, I guess I didn't fully answer your questions. IMHO, I believe it is irresponsible to try to "make" a child either gay or straight; I believe it is something you are born with and is not a choice. I certainly didn't choose to be hetero.

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5. 59

   TheLifeExperimentposted 12 years ago

   No. The gay gene has been found- homosexuality is a completely natural thing. Parents can't turn already gay children gay. Proof? There are so many gay people who have come from very strict religious households. Take Hannah Hart, for instance (she's a Youtube celebrity). She was raised in one of those households and she herself was homophobic for years. She slowly discovered that she was a lesbian, and tried to fight it off, but you can't fight off who you are! If being gay was a product of parenting or a choice, a whole lot less people would be gay.

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   1. 60

      win-winresourcesposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      Thelife-
      
      I do not believe there is any scientific evidence, much less proof, that any "gay gene" has been identified.  If people are more comfortable living a certain lifestyle - so be it.  But to attribute it to genetics is probably mistaken.

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   2. 96

      SmartAndFunposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      Although nothing has been proven, there is plenty of evidence, including a mixture of genetics and hormones.
      http://www.newscientist.com/article/dn1 … e-sex.html
      That is just one article. There are oth

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   3. 59

      TheLifeExperimentposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      win-win: I'm sorry, but do you honestly think gay people are "more comfortable" being bullied and threatened on sometimes a daily basis? It is absolutely not a choice and to think so is the real mistake.

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   4. 66

      Innuentendreposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      Sexuality regardless of origin, be it genetic or environmental factors is individual. Albeit every choice doesn't yield comfortable results, if gayness is a desirable quality of life, it should deserve the same protections as straightness.

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   5. 60

      win-winresourcesposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      SmartandFun-
      
      By way of reinforcing the concern about suspect research, your citation is a Non-peer-reviewed weekly with all of the problems that come with that.  Sadly, bogus assertions that a "gay gene" has been found does little to aid the discuss

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   6. 59

      TheLifeExperimentposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      win-win- why are you so stubborn to accept the fact that being gay isn't a choice? the gay gene has been found- like anything else on the internet, its hard to find a reliable source. Dont put your views on gays ahead of fact.

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   7. 60

      win-winresourcesposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      Thelife-
      
      I am persuaded by fact, not conjecture.  Just wanting something to be so does not make it so.  Accordingly, please cite some facts, replicable and authentic.  There is no such evidence of a "gay gene" being successfully isolated. I have no

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   8. 59

      TheLifeExperimentposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      win-win, do tell me, how is it that gays have been around for centuries, and how do parents "make" their kids gay? And if its a choice, why do you "choose" to be straight? Gays are just as much attracted to the same sex as u are to the opposite sex.

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   9. 60

      win-winresourcesposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      Thelife-
      
      Since no genetic material is passed from a homosexual union how can you assert on how gays have been around (and continue to be) without genetics.  Looks a lot like nurture, maybe a genetic predisposition.  I have no position on gays.

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   10. 59

       TheLifeExperimentposted 12 years agoin reply to this

       Gays can, in fact, have children. Men have sperm, women have eggs. There are levels of "gayness"- maybe you've heard of the Kinsey 6- straights can be partly gay. There are more ways to have kids than a straight man and woman.

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   11. 60

       win-winresourcesposted 12 years agoin reply to this

       The life-
       
       Homosexual reproduction is exceedingly rare and would not, likely, be adequate to sustain that genetic pool over generations.  Again, I see no facts.  Just your wish that it be so.  Inflamed opinion does little to advance the body of knowl

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   12. 59

       TheLifeExperimentposted 12 years agoin reply to this

       win-win- I actually dont have some incessant desire for there to be  gay gene. I'm going off fact as well. Search the internet, and think:does it make sense for being gay to be a choice?It doesnt.People dont like to be harassed due to their sexuality

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   13. 60

       win-winresourcesposted 12 years agoin reply to this

       Thelife-
       
       All of this is beside the point. People can be driven, enticed, or stumble upon a lifestyle.  Even one that has several negative ramifications.  If it meets enough of their relationship goals, then that's how they proceed - regardless.

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   14. 59

       TheLifeExperimentposted 12 years agoin reply to this

       win-win- did you make a conscious decision to be straight, or did you just develop crushes without thinking about what gender they were? Being gay isnt a lifestyle, but a trait, like brown hair.You can dye your hair, but it will always really be brwn

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   15. 60

       win-winresourcesposted 12 years agoin reply to this

       Thelife-
       
       You are rehashing the discussion we have had for the past couple hours.  "Trait"  means genetics.  We aren't likely to agree on that.  Think, instead, of percipitating events, when coupled with a predisposition starts laying the pathway.

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   16. 59

       TheLifeExperimentposted 12 years agoin reply to this

       win-win- exactly. I meant trait as in characteristic, not gene. so tell me, how do you think parents turn their kids gay? if you're so sure that it is nurture and not nature, give me proof, or an example.

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   17. 60

       win-winresourcesposted 12 years agoin reply to this

       Consider a young, fragile boy (say 13 or so)who repeatedly experiences embarrasing interactions with girls, but finds comfort with guys like him.  Will that make him gay?  Not necessairly, but it can begin establishing a less stressful pathway.

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   18. 59

       TheLifeExperimentposted 12 years agoin reply to this

       So he'll have 5 guy friends and 1 girlfriend. normal. There is a study that shows the brains of gay men and women are almost identical to that of the straight opposite sex. You can't control that. Brains are organs, not personalities.

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   19. 60

       win-winresourcesposted 12 years agoin reply to this

       Thelife-
       
       Thank you for the spirited discussion.
       
       -DW

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6. 59

   My2GreenBeansposted 12 years ago

   Oh, absolutely.  When my son was 1.5 I put a teeny-tiny dark purple feather in his hair. He went to my mother-in-laws house the next day. By the time I picked him up there was no feather. I asked where it was. She informed me she pulled it out (she had to pull hard too) because it was going to “turn him gay”.  I then shouted to my 8 year in the other room that I was sorry she was going to turn out to be a lesbian because I didn’t know better when she was a toddler & let her play with cars & Thomas the Train toys and frequently dressed her in pants. Similarly, we had snapped a photo of my toddler who had grabbed his sister’s baby doll and was cuddling it. My husband & I thought it was cute & shared it with the family. His younger sister informed us she immediately deleted it because her nephew looked gay in it! Oh… again, I didn’t know. So, my children are clearly going to grow up gay. I guess it is good I have a couple of gay friends so at least they will be acclimated. Oh, and sometimes my toddler imitates his older sister and puts on her headbands… EEEEKKKS.  Gay for sure!! Be careful parents…   Oh and I hope you realized that this answer was dripping in snarkiness!

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   1. 66

      Innuentendreposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      Idk you well enough to decipher your snarkiness yet My2GreenBeans. Perhaps straightness is a learned behavior reinforced by speciic gender boundaries set by parents.

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   2. 59

      My2GreenBeansposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      My house has no rules. The kids are allowed to play with whatever they like. If they are boy or girl they can play with dolls or cars or sports or glittery items. Put on moms heels, sure. My husband & I are straight. My chilren will be what they

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7. 91

   DzyMsLizzyposted 12 years ago

   In a word, NO!  That is one of the more ridiculous claims of the gay-bashing politicians, and others of their ilk.
   A person is born that way--they cannot help who they are.  It is not a choice or a decision they made.  This difference even shows up in brain scans.

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8. 55

   peter565posted 9 years ago

   When a parents who like to dress up their little boy as girls, during their childhood.  They are statistically more likely to be gay.  But it is unwise to assume all people who have this sort of experience in their childhood would turn gay.  A most significant example is that, there was a case where a person appear as a boy in his childhood, but since childhood have been like a girl and found himself attract to other boy, but in teenage years, without surgery, he started turning into a girl.  Doctors done a DNA test on him and found, he in fact have XX chromosome, but for some reason, before 15 the body is not able to release female hormone, causing him/her to appear as a male.  As an adult he/she is still attracted to man.  (I have a theory that maybe some gay people, are in fact in the same position.  I am talking about some gay men, who are really girly, probably have XX chromosome, but for some reason, can't release female hormone and some lesbian who is just like a guy, might have XY chromosome, but can't release male hormone.)

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9. 85

   tamarawilhiteposted 8 years ago

   Per the Regnerus New Family Structure Study (NFSS) study, around 60% of children of lesbian and 70% of children of homosexual men identified as strictly homosexual, versus more than 90% of children of heterosexual couples. So being raised by homosexual parents increases the odds the child is homosexual but most still come out "straight".
   A homosexual parent trying to force a child with heterosexual tendencies to follow their preferences is probably child abuse.

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