Seriously, though, I believe we should teach children about homosexual relations at the same capacity as other things - at the discretion of the parent, of course. It's their children, after all. Should they choose to teach them about homosexual relations as they would heterosexual, it would go a LONG way to erasing the stigma and easing the worries of children how may actually be gay.
The Hairminator said:
No, I do not. I don't think homosexuality should be encouraged, unless it actually comes from the child itself, with as little as external influence as possible.
The same goes for the opposite- The kid will learn soon enough, and probably ask her parents about it- then they should tell her, naturally, as unbiased as they can. If she later finds out she is indeed actually queer, it would be better if she does not have any subconscious issues with it inherited from her parents.
But still, they should not be handled equally, as heterosexuality is still the norm- and the natural way to reproduce. If the children are gay, they will probably find it out themselves. The important thing is to then make sure they are neither ashamed or feel otherwise repressed.
Whether the user meant it or not, I can't help but feel a sort of homophobic vibe from this post. To approach homosexuality in a retroactive fashion only helps the stigma. To make it known that it "isn't right" even though that besides sexual preferences, gays and lesbians are people like everybody else.
Furthermore, to say heterosexuality is the norm is like saying that being right-handed is the norm. Sure, their may be more right-handed people than left-handed people, but that doesn't mean left-handed people are abnormal. Like a person's handedness, many forms of sexuality have been around since the beginning.
Yes, heterosexual intercourse is the only way for new life to be born. However, encouraging everybody to do so will only create problems. Whether people believe it or not, the world is overpopulated. With overpopulation comes scarcity in resource (just because it isn't happening to you, does not mean it isn't happening elsewhere). Homosexuals are actually doing the world a grand favor in the long run. They cannot produce new life (in most cases*) and many are willing to give homes and a family to children in need of both.
Some may argue that allowing the general acceptance of homosexuality will make it okay for people to willingly end there genetic legacy, which may be the biggest concern to some parents. Personally, I believe such a thing to be arbitrary. Yes, I am here today to say these things because those before me created a union of a man and a woman, but that was their choice (at least, I hope). They were people in control of their own destiny.
But I digress...
My point: Yes, we should teach children about homosexuality. We should teach them because at the end of the day sexuality doesn't matter and that we should love our children despite their preferences.