First and foremost, it is a common belief that being homosexual is a choice. Or, that it is caused by childhood influences.
--->Both of these ideas are not true. A series of traumatic events could possibly influence someone in this way, but it's highly unlikely. Compare the number of homosexuals to the number of child trauma cases. The ratio is (grand number):(puny number). And the idea of choice is very unrational.
Think about this, for you and for most of the people you know, regardless of where you or they live. Could you or they (being heterosexual) open up to the idea of loving someone deeply and/or intimately? Sexually is not a mandate for a homo or heterosexual relationship. More often than anything, the answer will be NO.
If you can't do it, why should it be us only.
Back to the reason, it's the way we are born.
For those who "come out". Coming out is an important time for most GLBT individuals. For most in our youths, before we have developed any sexual identity, we know or have a feeling that the life that society deems "normal" (an ugly word that classifies people into groups that don't exisit.) does not match who we are. The age of coming out can vary from person-to-person. There are those who can identify in their pre-pubescence. There are those who don't discover themselves until their final days in life. And there are the many that are in between.
I was one that was interested in other girls when I was young. I had several "girlfrends" between the ages of 6 and 12. However, there were times that my parents found out and tried to keep us apart. I really enjoyed summer camps. This lasted up until high school when I had one encounter with a boy. I was friends with him, but he wanted more. That was too much for me. And since that time, I have made a list of why I must be with women rather than men. Probably the cleanest is that I just don't understand so many things they do. Of the others, some could be taken offensively, so I'll stop.
On the other hands, it's not just the typical male persona that perplexes, but their are many kinds of people I don't understand. That is part of the driving force for studying psychology and sociology. And in my readings and such, I have come to general conclusions, which I stated on the first page.
Back to the topic at hand, here are two pages that show some of the differences between mentalities across the GLBTI spectrum.
This page is to help understand the GLBTTI Rainbow.
The GLBTI community is very large and diverse so is often misunderstood by many, including its own members.
A variation of that page shows more of the mentallity of some types.
In addition to that, some facts about people being Gay, Lesbian, Bi, Trans or Intersexed compared to Nature Herself,
Nudging Darwin over the rainbow / Nature is diverse. There are gay sheep and lesbian lizards. A transgendered Stanford biologist tells all.
And that's another thing. Many people don't understand transsexualism. For most people, homosexuality is so common, is some ways, it's "almost" accepted. In quite the contrary, transsexualism is often shunned. For a person to remove their genitalia to have it recreated to match that of their gender, opposite of their sex, is almost freakish to many. Unfortunately, this is ignorance playing a nasty game.
These are Myths of Transsexualism
To many sex and gender are the same.
Sex - A physical characteristic - body form. Reproductive function.
Gender - The overlaying mental charachteristic. How we identify - to be a man, woman, or androgynous (both - 50%man and 50% woman).
It is this basis that determines for say a man to love, be mutual and/or be loved by another man. And just the same for a woman to love, be mutual and/or be loved by another woman.
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(Creation day [9-10 November 2005] note - some ideas may be incomplete. But after going all day and it now being 4:30 AM, I did more than I first intended.)