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MARCH 30, 2010 ARCHIVED STORIES:
ORLANDO, Fla. (BP)--The National Association of Social Workers of Uganda recently endorsed anti-homosexuality legislation under consideration in that country's parliament, prompting a response from Exodus International.
In a lengthy statement on the matter, the social workers association, which was established in 1973 to promote the social work profession in Uganda, said homosexuality has been discouraged in most societies as abnormal and harmful behavior with potential to spread in the population once tolerated.
"In all societies throughout history, it has been self-evident that the normal pattern for human beings as well as for all living organisms in general is for males to unite sexually with females, whether reproduction was a goal for such union or not," the social workers said.
The statement went on to note that until 1973 the American Psychological Association listed homosexuality among abnormal conditions requiring the clinical intervention of psychologists. The political debate stirred by biologist Alfred Kinsey, who invented the term "sexual orientation," forced the removal of the APA listing, the NASWU said.
"In spite of this stand by the American Psychological Association, scientific studies over millennia have consistently showed that there is no genetic basis for homosexual behavior," the statement said. "... Homosexuality belongs to the category of other disapproved behaviors that humans in most societies recognize as self-evidently abnormal and harmful and require everybody to learn the discipline of avoiding.
"These norms and values are also often codified into laws that all members of society are expected to observe."
When behavior achieves social acceptance and legal approval, the social workers association said, it easily spreads through the process of social learning, experimentation and modeling.
"This most likely explains why homosexual practice is more prevalent in societies where legal approval and social acceptance are higher," the statement said. "This also explains why throughout history, nations have used the law to prevent or curtail the spread of undesirable behavior."
Uganda's proposed legislation, the organization said, is needed because of increasing incidents of homosexual abuse of children and youth, the promotion of homosexuality by some groups including UNICEF, and government-led campaigns at the United Nations to normalize homosexuality on an international level. Read More
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