Lesbian motherhood does not differ much from traditional motherhood, and becoming a parent allows adults to understand their moral significance and develop new values. When a lesbian couple enters motherhood, society starts to see them more as parents but not as a couple. At the same time, lesbian mothers face more difficulties than heterosexual mothers, though motherhood in both cases is similar. Lesbians are often considered sexually profligate people who are not capable of self-sacrifice (Lewin 465). However, when people see a lesbian couple whose attitude towards their children is the same as the one in heterosexual couples, they may change their attitude towards lesbian motherhood.
Lesbian and gay parenthood are quite similar since they both give homosexual couples an opportunity to gain more respect and acceptance from society. Though lesbian motherhood and gay fatherhood are plain in terms of society’s attitude towards them, there are several differences in their perception. Gay fathers are seen as self-indulgent and selfish people who have an extravagant manner of expressing themselves (Lewin 468). Moreover, gay fathers are often suspected of inappropriate sexual behavior, which may become the reason for their children having AIDS in the future (Lewin 469). The article by Ellen Lewin refutes these myths, clearly showing that lesbian and gay parenthood do not differ from traditional heterosexual parenthood.
Gender is actively performed and created through the use of language where the typically male and female manners of expression are distinguished. Thus, male language often expresses the power and authority they possess, especially in front of other males. However, when speaking to women, males tend to occupy the position of fathers who talk to their children (Kiesling 265). It happens because women are usually perceived inferior to men, and the latter should explain everything to them and protect them as fathers usually do.
Transgender, nonbinary, and intersex people always faced negative judgment and oppression from society, expressed in many different ways. Throughout the previous century, transgender people were perceived as canvases for medical experiments instead of getting access to hormones and surgery (Gill-Peterson). Even now, people tend to treat people relying on their biological sex though society has become more tolerant towards transgender, nonbinary, and intersex people. However, the significant changes are impossible when people are assessed by their biological sex but not by their true personalities.
Works Cited
Gill-Peterson, Julian. “Trans Kids in the US Were Seeking Treatment Decades before Today’s Political Battles over Access to Health Care.” The Conversation, 2021.
Kiesling, Scott R. “’Now I GottaWatch What I Say’: Shifting Constructions of Masculinity in Discourse.” Gender in Cross-cultural Perspective, Routledge, 2017, pp. 254-270.
Lewin, Ellen. “Resignation and Refusal: The Moral Calculus of Lesbian and Gay Parenthood in the United States.” Gender in Cross-cultural Perspective, Routledge, 2017, pp.463-474.