Social Work | Developmental Issues for Gay, Lesbian, and
Bisexual People S300 | 20636 | Capler Gay, lesbian, and bisexual
people are an important segment of American society as reflected
in the increasing visibility of GLB people in positions of
power, in entertainment and the media, and the plethora of
political action on GLB issues. Yet this population faces
inequality in legal protections and prejudicial societal
attitudes. GLB people routinely deal with homophobia and
heterosexism at political, legal, and interpersonal levels.
Therefore, a familiarity with issues unique to the GLB
population is vitally important for all individuals who want to
provide informed and helpful services to people in need. This
course explores the developmental issues that impact gay,
lesbian, and bisexual people, using a social work person-in-
environment perspective. It is grounded on a current
understanding of theory and research, and will include topics
such as GLB identity formation, homophobia, heterosexism,
history of the