9781422283776

12 ENGAG I NG WI TH POL I T I CS

of homosexuals from 1933 to 1945. As she stood and read the details of how thousands of gay people were murdered, she was shocked. “That’s something people don’t talk about so much,” she says. “I can’t believe that ever happened. But it’s important for us to remember that it did, so we can stop these things from happening again.” It may seem unlikely that such a thing could happen again. Today, popular culture is full of positive LGBT icons, such as musician Sir Elton John and television host Ellen DeGeneres. Rainbow-colored displays celebrate LGBT pride across the country during annual festivals. And with access to a diverse collection of viewpoints and in- formation on the Internet, people are becoming increasingly familiar with—and comfortable with—LGBT issues and their relationship to national politics. But these positive strides are a relatively recent development in the evolution of LGBT equality. For centuries, fear, hatred, and prejudice against LGBT people have run rampant; many have used their inter- pretation of the Bible’s teachings as a weapon against LGBT people. Even today, despite growing acceptance and understanding, the fight for LGBT rights continues in the United States and around the world. In some places, including Saudi Arabia and Iran, homosexuality is still punishable by imprisonment or even death. Understanding the history of LGBT issues can begin with something as simple as defining the term homosexual. While today it commonly refers to sexual attraction to people of one’s own gender, the meaning has changed significantly over time.