Anti-homosexual sentiment in Western societies (the labelling of same-sex love as deviant) can be traced back to Christian doctrine as early as the fourth century A.D. Homosexual acts, or acts of "deviance," given the full negative connotations of the word, are still denigrated by society. Today's laws, still reflective of strong anti-gay bias, are far from equitable in their treatment of homosexuals. The origins and perpetuation (through more covert forms of ostracisation) of anti-homosexual sentiment will be examined. Burke's (1993) interviews with homosexual and heterosexual English police officers will serve as a case study of modern attitudes toward gayness. Finally, the Canadian Charter will be examined to determine the legal status of same sex intimate relationships today in Canada.
In his study guide to Sociological Explanations of Criminal and Deviant Behavior, Brian Burtch (1994) cites the work of E. D. Salamon (1988) to show that anti-homosexual sentiment in Western societies is traceable to Christian doctrine, "including the work of St. Augustine (fourth century A.D.) and St. Thomas Aquinas (thirteenth century A.D.). A pronatalist (birth) ideology meant that acts that could not lead to procreation were denounced as sinful" (Salamon, 1988, cited in Burtch, p. 44).
In his A Place at the Table, Bruce Bawer (1993) notes the Biblical passage most often quoted by the religious right to condemn homosexuals. The New Testament passage most often cited in connection with homosexuality is Romans 1:26-27: " . . . God has given them [the Romans] up to shameful passions . . . men . . .. giving up natural relations with women . . . " (p. 133). Bawer (1993) clarifies, "the persons Paul condemns are manifestly not homosexual: what he derogates are homosexual acts committed by apparently heterosexual persons. The whole point of Romans 1, in fact, is to stigmatize persons who have rejected their calling, gotten off the true p...