2.CNN Reaction to Leelah/Josh Alcorn's Death
3. Fox News Reaction to Leelah/Josh Alcorn's Death
4. Lesbian Stereotypes Addressed by a Lesbian
5. "Queer as Folk" British TV Show
Questions:
What message(s) (consistent or conflicting) are being sent about this cultural group through these artifacts? Illustrate how the artifacts convey the message(s).
I chose this minority group because I know that it's a current issue that I would like to understand better, and I know that the current social climate has a big impact on a lot of people. I'm also relatively unfamiliar with how the media portrays LBGQT; so as I was exploring media to see how this minority is portrayed I was a little startled. The overriding theme that I saw throughout media was the over-sexualization of this group of people. The LBGQT is portrayed as more sexual than they are anything else, even by members of the community itself; I'll demonstrate this point by referring the numbered evidences above.
"Take me to Church" by Hozier (1) is a popular song that talks about the struggles of being homosexual in a religious, bigoted world. In the music video, the homosexual couple is definitely portrayed as overly sexual. The video switches between two men making out on top of each other and a mob trashing the house of a gay person. They're level of intimacy was uncomfortable, regardless of the genders of the couple. The singer also refers to his church as allowing him to "worship in the bedroom" because his only heaven is with his partner, highlighting the sexuality of the relationship.
I also chose an article written by a Lesbian addressing stereotypes against her community (4), and though she countered some stereotypes (such as Lesbian attitudes towards heterosexuals and males), she just augmented the overly-sexualized image that I kept running into. She spent a lot of time talking about not only Lesbian sexual behavior, but in fact was touting it as better. Even when she wasn't talking about explicitly sexual topics, she was often talking about various issues of attraction related to sexuality.
The British TV "Queer as Folk" (5) also highlights the sexual part of being homosexual. The show focuses on the relationships and lives of 5 gay men in Britain. I tried to watch some of the TV show after I read about it, and the very first episode started off by saying "it's all about sex"while the five men are at a club. This first episode sets the premise of the show, and instead of trying to highlight loving relationships or struggles of homosexuality in society, the show said that "it's all about sex".
I also found it interesting to see how Fox News (3) (a very conservative news network) and CNN (2) (a very liberal network) reacted to the suicide of Leelah/Josh Alcorn, a 17-year-old boy that wanted to be a transgender. Leelah committed suicide because she thought that since she couldn't start her transgender transition until she was an adult due to her parents' restriction. She thought that without the change, her life wasn't worth living. Because of the way that Leelah viewed herself--she defined herself by her sexuality--she didn't think that she had anything left to live for. Fox News put out an article with a mere 105 words, 20 days after the suicide, giving a bare minimum of information. CNN, on the other hand, had a full newscast the within a few days of the suicide and a written article of 1667 words. The article emphasized how Leelah's conservative Christian parents caused her suicide through their repressive practices. The contrast between these two sources leads me to believe that part of the reason that the homosexual community is represented as so overly sexual is because conservatives are reticent to talk about the issue, and liberals are perhaps more open than they need to be.
How might this message(s) impact how a child from this cultural group is viewed and treated in the classroom?
Because the LBGQT community is over-sexualized, children that consider themselves a part of this community can be viewed as a negative influence on their peers. If teachers and students imbibe this "single story", then not only will they treat homosexual children as if they are no more than their sexual desires, but the LBGQT children themselves will start to conform to the stereotype as way to understand themselves. These children can be ostracized, bullied, and taken advantage of sexually just because of the stereotype that they have, similar to how girls with the reputation of being scandalous are more likely to have their standard pushed by guys with expectations. So in the classroom, their relationships with their peers can be tainted and traumatic for their psyches.
Why is it important for teachers to examine how cultural groups are represented in the media, curriculum and policy?
Teachers, in many ways, have a lot of influence over the culture of a nation. They also can influence the ability of children to succeed long term. By being aware of media, curriculum, and policy in regards to the gay community, teachers can appropriately react to the dynamics of the children in their classroom; they can channel and change more destructive behaviors/views. And by being more knowledgeable, teachers strengthen their ethos with their students, increasing their effectiveness in enacting change in their classroom. And as a teacher, I don't want to be prejudiced against my students; by really examining the issues, I'm more likely to be fair to everyone and provide the optimum solution.
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