It is wrong to think that the union between people of the same sex began a short time ago, the homosexual relationship has existed since antiquity, but was not known by this term. Prejudice was practically nil when it came to this type of relationship, it was even created a set of laws giving privileges to prostitutes and prostitutes who participated in religious cults, the document was granted by Emperor Hammurabi in ancient Mesopotamia, in fence from 1750 BC Ç. These laws declared both sacred and that they could have relations with devout men within the temples of Mesopotamia, Sicily, India, Egypt and Phoenicia, among others.
Heirs to the Hammurabi set of laws, Hittite laws recognized same-sex unions. In ancient cities like Greece and Rome, it was normal for an older man to have sex with a younger one. According to the Greek philosopher Socrates, anal intercourse was the best form of inspiration and heterosexual sex served only for the procreation of man. In Athens, for the education of young people, adolescents were expected to accept the relationship with older men, so that they could absorb their virtues and philosophical knowledge. When the young man turned 12, and once he and his family were in agreement, he became a passive partner until around 18 years of age. Normally, the boy only became a man in society when he was 25 years old, taking an active role in their relationships.
The Romans held love ideals equivalent to those of the Greeks. The relationship between an older man and a younger man was understood as a feeling of purity. Sexual relationships between older men, on the other hand, were not viewed favorably, being despised by society and even prevented from holding public office. All this understanding of same-sex relationships comes from the beliefs of these ancient societies. Within Greek mythology, Roman, for example, there was homosexuality. So much so that many ancient gods had no defined sex. Until then, sex was not seen for the sole purpose of procreation, but of feelings. This concept only began to change with the arrival of Christianity, in this context the Roman Emperor Constantine converted to the Christian faith, making religion mandatory in his empire. Since then, heterosexual sex has expanded its concept of procreation and homosexuality has become something abnormal.
In 533, the Christian Emperor Justinian created the first text of law prohibiting homosexuality without reservation. Having linked all homosexual ties to adultery (a crime that had the death penalty as punishment). After the creation of this law, others emerged, generating more restrictions and punishments for homosexuals, establishing increasingly severe punishments. No matter how much prohibition it had, the customs remained the same until the mid-14th century.
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The Catholic Church was faced with a series of crises, witnessing the rise of Protestantism with the Reformation of Luther. In the face of Renaissance humanism, the old values of relationships between people of the same sex resurfaced. Artists from different segments contemplated the love between men. In an attempt to eradicate the relationship between equals, several laws were created, with increasingly severe punishments. Hence science joined with religion to establish a cause for homosexuality. So much so that a treatment aimed exclusively at cases of homosexuality and female nymphomania was created: lobotomy. Technique developed by the Portuguese neurosurgeon António Egas Moniz (winner of the Nobel Prize in Medicine in 1949), which consisted of an intervention surgical, cutting a piece of the brain of "psychiatric patients", cut made in the nerves of the prefrontal cortex, several people were subjected to lobotomy. This treatment was used because homosexuality was beginning to be seen as a disease, as if it were a genetic anomaly. The scientific community's concern with homosexuality began in the 19th century, the expression “homosexuality” was created in 1848 by the German psychologist Karoly Maria Benkert. For him the disorder was not just psychological, nature would have endowed certain male and female individuals with the sexual impulse at birth. Creating a direct aversion to the opposite sex. In 1897, the first book related to homosexuality was published, having as author the Englishman Havelock Ellis. Like other people at the time, he argued that people who had same-sex relationships had a congenital and hereditary disease, in addition to being associated with family problems. It was not until 1979 that the American Psychiatric Association removed homosexuality from the official list of mental illnesses. In the 1980s and 1990s developed countries banned discrimination against gays and lesbians. We found that the struggle of homosexuals for the right to freedom of relating to people of the same sex has always been huge. Many battles have been won, there are still many to be confronted.
We are all free to live however we want, to establish the most diverse types of relationships, for people who are against gay relationships, all that remains is to respect, because every human being must be respected. As the famous popular saying goes: “Your rights begin when mine end”. Discrimination is a crime, if we want a just society we must first review our way of living with the rest of the world.
by Eliene Percília
Brazil School Team
History - Brazil School
