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Unfortunately, the
unchanging terms of the
discussions in Singapore
– often along the lines of “Nature
versus Nurture” and “East versus
West” – are sorely lacking the context of recent
legislative, academic and cultural changes towards
sexuality in general.
Also, anyone who has spoken to a child knows that
communication with children is dynamic and not
just a one-way channel.
Whilst it is important that discussions
accommodate different viewpoints, civic
responsibility demands that these discussions not
only reflect but also respond to these changes.
After all, the recent HPB brouhaha illustrates that
it is important to openly discuss, rather than shy
away from, the topic.
18
Family & Life • May 2014
3
ABOUT THAT GAY GENE
Discussions around homosexuality
came into being in the 19th century.
The “nature/nurture” divide finds
its etymological roots in the work of British
polymath Francis Galton, who was otherwise
known for his dubious research on hereditary
traits and eugenics in criminals. In more
recent memory, eugenics played a large part
in the policies of the Nazi party who colourcoded their prisoners according to what the
authorities deemed were their respective
“defects” – foremost among these being
homosexuality, which was represented by a
pink triangle.
From the 1960s till the present day, this
nature/nurture divide has been turned on
its head. Research has been carried out on
the hypothesis of a “gay gene”, as it was
described by media in the early 1990s, often
by geneticists empathetic to LGBT rights. For
instance, the work of American geneticist
Dean Hamer in 1993 found that there were
genetic similarities amongst homosexual
members of the same family. More recently
this year, a study conducted by Dr Michael
Bailey discovered that there were at least two
chromosomes that affected a man’s sexual
orientation. “Sexual orientation has nothing
to do with choice. Our findings suggest there
may be genes at play - we found evidence for
two sets that affect whether a man is gay or
straight,” Dr Bailey says. However, he sounds
a word of caution and explains that there are
certainly other enviro