Issue date: 10/10/08 Section: Opinion

Media Credit: Nadia Khalik

In recent years, the question has been applied to whether being gay is genetic or a choice. It is not a light topic. It has caused a great deal of debates in politics, faith and science.
The evidence still seems to point out that there isn't an answer. In 1991, genetic researcher Simon LeVay, compared the brains of heterosexual men and women and to the brains of homosexual men. In his reports he found that there was a slight difference in the Interstitial Nucleus of the Anterior Hypothalamus (INAH3) in homosexual men and straight men. The end results were not conclusive enough to support the genetic theory.
Critics of the report also claim that brain patterns change over the years, which also points to the behavior and outside influences. LeVay admitted in an interview in 1994, "It's important to stress what I didn't find. I did not prove that homosexuality is genetic or find a genetic cause for being gay. I didn't show that gay men are born that way, the most common mistake people make in interpreting my work." Since then, there have been numerous attempts to isolate and find a genetic cause for being homosexual, but there still isn't any conclusive evidence to be found which supports that claim.
To put it simply, being gay is a choice. It may not be an easy one, such as deciding what brand of shoes to wear or what movie to see, but it is still a choice. For example, no person is born knowing if they prefer whole milk or non-fat, it's through experience and experimentation that individuals discover their preferences. Opinions about the laws and morality of homosexuality will always be waged, but when it comes to genetics, it can be said that the case is closed.

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