History Of The Supreme Court Case Of Obergefell V. Hodges

The 26th of June 2015 was a day that went down in history for the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender (LGBT) community. This was the date of the decision for the landmark Supreme Court case, Obergefell v. Hodges, which determined that same-sex marriages were to be considered legal in all fifty states (Obergefell v. Hodges, 2015). Those who are in the LGBT community were overjoyed to finally have the long awaited marriage rights that had been granted to heterosexual couples for hundreds of years (Pearson, Sanchez, & Martinez, 2015). The Supreme Court decision is representative of the changes that have occurred in the United States in regard to LGBT individuals over time. However, the pages and pages of dissent written by Chief Justice Roberts, Associate Justice Scalia, Associate Justice Thomas, and Associate Justice Alito, along with the many people across the nation who disagreed with the Court’s decision, show that not everyone in the United States has improved their opinion of those in the LGBT community. Many would hold the Supreme Court decision to be a welcome change (Pearson, Sanchez, & Martinez, 2015). In recent history, the amount of research examining the LGBT community has increased, specifically, research on views of the LGBT community by heterosexual individuals (Raja & Stokes, 1998; Yost & Thomas, 2012; Worthen, 2013). Gregory Herek, among others, has greatly contributed to this area of study and has allowed those studying LGBT individuals to have a greater understanding of how this group of people is perceived by others (Herek, 2000; Herek, 2002; Norton & Herek, 2013). Many of these studies found evidence that those who identify as female have more positive views of LGBT individuals than those who identify as male. The reason behind this may have to do with society’s perceived importance of masculinity, and also what is seen as masculine and what is not. Males have less flexibility in expressions of gender roles than women, and therefore, any deviance from these roles can be seen as an expression of femininity. Male homosexuality itself is seen as a break from typical gender roles, and can even be seen as an attempt to go against the long standing traditions that gender roles have in society. This may be why there is a correlation between traditional gender roles and negative views of male homosexuality. There has been less research as to why there are negative views of female homosexuality (M. A. Monto & J. Supinski, 2014). Research has shown that an individual is more likely to have positive views of an individual in the LGBT community when that individual presents as a different gender than the reporter (Eliason, 1997; Raja & Stokes, 1998). …show more content…
These data occur regardless of which subgroup of the LGBT community is being examined. This may be because heterosexual individuals are uncomfortable with the thought of being attractive to someone in the LGBT community that identifies with the same gender as them. Individuals that do not have the same gender identity would therefore be seen as more comfortable to be in contact with as the chance of sexual advances toward them is decreased (Worthen, 2013). In studies that look at how LGBT individuals view members of their own community along with heterosexual individuals’ views, there is evidence that LGBT individuals see the LGBT community differently than those who are not. The LGBT individuals see others in the LGBT community more positively than those who are not (Worthen, 2013). For example, a lesbian woman will often have a more positive view of a gay man than a bisexual woman. It is also noted that bisexual and transgender individuals are often looked down upon not only by heterosexual individuals, but by homosexual individuals as well (Weiss, 2004). Because of this, gay …show more content…
In having contact with LGBT individuals, there is a challenging of the myths and stereotypes that are placed on these groups of people. This may be because an individual is able to see the similarities that exist between heterosexual individuals and the LGBT individual, and result in a normalizing of the otherwise foreign behavior (Fingerhut, 2011). There are many factors that influence views on the LGBT community. These distinctions, as well as additional views regarding heterosexual individuals, will be examined in this