What percentage of the world is gay? Who was the first gay in history? Is there a state with the most gays?

People ask many similar questions every day because nowadays homosexuality is among the №1 issues on the agenda of the world’s news feed. In many countries, LGBT people often stumble upon society’s ignorance and would like to be perceived as average citizens with equal rights to any other human beings.

That’s why it is important to disclose the truth about representatives of this community. By the way, our list contains a dose of a good humor. Enjoy!

Myth №1: There Were no Gays Before XX Century – They Showed Up Only Now

Fact: homosexuality had been known to humanity since ancient times. For example, in Ancient Greece, being an active gay signaled a man’s masculinity and his high social status. A mature man usually got into a relationship with a young man for the purpose of knowledge transfer and just for pleasure. There is some evidence that male teenagers have been even more popular among men than women. A quotation found in an ancient source “Women are for business, boys are for pleasure” is a testimony to this fact.

Ancient Celts are the other European nation in which men preferred male lovers over females. According to Aristotle and his tractates, their women were beautiful, but most of the men openly demonstrated gay behavior.

There are many drawn images of homosexual acts found in Egypt. Moreover, two male beauty therapists at the pharaoh’s court named Khnumhotep and Niankhkhnum were found buried together in a shared tomb. This practice usually referred to married couples and symbolized their eternal love in the afterlife. So, we can suppose those two are still together on the other side. They were not the only famous homosexual people in Egypt; it is interesting that long-liver Pharaoh Pepi II was likely gay, too.

However, with the arrival of the Medieval Ages (also known as Dark Ages of Europe) homosexuality became stigmatized and stayed that way until the XX century. That’s why not many people who lived in those times revealed the truth about their love lives.

Myth №2: Talks About Gays May Turn Heterosexual Person to Gay

Fact: even though the causes of homosexuality have not been fully explored, the majority of scientists lean towards the congenital nature of sexual orientation. This means you can’t become gay just because you decided to or somebody convinced you to. The so-called homosexual propaganda is not even possible. You can’t change your natural eye or hair color, and that’s almost the same thing.

The statistics vary from survey to survey, but the most popular is an opinion that 3-4% of the population is gay at all times. This number remains the same regardless of political reforms and current trends.

Big news: many people in the world don’t even suspect being bisexual. The study of American biologist Alfred Kinsey showed that the sexual orientation of humans resembles a scale, not two polar poles. Almost half of all people are between extreme points and can be attracted to both sexes in varying degrees. This means that those “gays” or “heterosexuals” who suddenly moved to another “team” are obviously bisexual.

Myth №3: All Gay Men Look Like Women, All Gay Women Look Like Men

Fact: the feminine gays and masculine lesbians are simply more visible in a crowd. The percentage of homosexuals among folks on the streets is much higher than can be imagined. The majority of people look like average men and women, so they are perceived as heterosexual by default. Nevertheless, some of them are gays, because being gay is not about acting and dressing weird or being androgynous.

The other fact is that androgyny and effeminate behavior is more widespread among gays. This is not surprising at all because both heterosexual and homosexual relationships are still tied to the binary gender system. This means that one partner in a couple should demonstrate feminine features, while the other one – masculine. That is the main reason why gays and lesbians behave like women and men respectively is an attempt to meet society’s standards.

Also, open homosexuals are less shy in expressing their personality in extraordinary ways, so they can easily allow themselves to dress as women or be hairdressers. Who knows how many straight men secretly dream of wearing a dress just for a day?

Myth №4: Gays are Posers and Can’t Really Love for a Long Time

Tell it to Tom Ford and Richard Buckley, who celebrated their 30th anniversary in 2016. Ford was 25 when he met Buckley and since then they’ve never been apart. By the way, the designer is a great evidence of previous myth’s falsehood. Just take a look at him: what an epitome of masculinity.

The other prominent LGBT figures in America and the rest of the world strike by their fidelity, too. The most famous gay in the music industry, Elton John, has been dating his partner, David Furnish, for 11 years before they married in 2014. Now the couple has been together for 14 years and are raising two children.

Women are keeping pace: comedian and iconic LGBT activist Ellen DeGeneres married her beloved Portia de Rossi in 2008 after a four-year relationship. As of 2017, actresses are making up a life together within 13 years.

It will be difficult to break the score of Dorothy Louise “Del” Martin and Phyllis Lyon. Those two legendary women lived together for 55 years until Del Martin died in 2008 at the age of 87. The couple married in 2004, being 83 and 79 years old, respectively. They dedicated their entire lives to the protection of LGBT rights in America and founded the first social and human rights organization for lesbians in the USA called “Daughters of Bilitis.” At that time, being gay was not cool, but they did it because of great love.

Myth №5: Homophobia Is a Fear of Gays

Fact: the word “phobia” in translation from Greek really means a compulsive fear. However, in the case of “homophobia,” “xenophobia,” etc., it is not a phobia in clinical terms. In the modern sense, it represents an irrational hatred towards homosexual people.

One of the most shocking LGBT facts is that aggressive homophobes may highly likely be latent gays. Their hidden sexual attraction to men transforms into strong negative emotions. Such people can insult gays in public places or even attempt to injure men suspected of homosexuality. Modern thinkers consider such behavior to be a mental health issue, which may be treated by a psychologist. Homophobia is more inherent to men because female homosexuality is more accepted by society.

Myth №6: Gays Always Choose Between Top & Bottom

In fact, a study conducted by scientists from the University of Calgary showed that 68% of gay men prefer the bottom (or passive) role in sex, while the other 32% lean towards the top (or active) role. However, this research is probably totally based on generalizations, because most homosexuals actually consider themselves to be versatile or do not identify themselves with either role.

The most widespread question for gay men from straight people is “Who is the woman in your couple?” They are sure that one of the guys should definitely act as a girl in bed, especially during anal sex. That can’t be true, because of the men’s homosexuality. In the case of gay guys, they have an attraction to men, not to women. Otherwise, he could find a girlfriend instead of boyfriend and enjoy her girly behavior. Even though many homosexual people meet some principles of the binary standards in their relationships, they are still far from being like straight couples.

The other shocking thing about homosexuality is that approximately 1 out of 3 gays don’t enjoy anal sex that much. So, 33% of them can’t be a top or bottom at all, because these concepts are applicable only to this kind of sexual activity.

Myth №7: Homosexual People Are Drug Users and All They Do Is Clubbing

Gay bars and clubs became iconic in LGBT history. They were the places where originated the social justice movement during the Stonewall riots started in 1969. Nevertheless, it doesn’t mean that all gays and lesbians are constantly hanging out in clubs or bars in search of a new partner. Nightlife spots are popular places to look for somebody, so it is way easier to find a date there than on the street. That’s why you may see more homosexual people in those venues as compared to a shopping mall, restaurant, or subway — places which are not intended for meeting new people.

There is also the fact that gay or lesbian teens are more prone to drug abuse. They drink alcohol twice as much as heterosexual youngsters and smoke marijuana three times more often. Somebody may think they are all mentally ill and so they are junkies. It’s not that simple: experts assume that the average homosexual is more likely to feel depressed, lonely, and misunderstood due to society’s prejudice and discrimination. Some of them may also blame themselves for such thoughts and behavior and seek psychological help.

Myth №8: Gays Have More Partners than Heterosexual People

The former deputy leader of UKIP (here – United Kingdom Independence Party), Lord Christopher Monckton, thinks that homosexuals may have up to 20,000 partners during their sexually active lifetime. Is he right?

Truth: many websites which provide fun facts about gays tell their readers that an average gay has approximately 300 or more partners in his life. Some of them obviously can boast of such a score, but gays are humans, after all.

The majority of people of various genders, colors, nationalities, and sexual orientation simply don’t have time for so much sex.

Just imagine: your sexually active lifetime duration is about 40-50 years. Each year you would need to hook up with at least 6 totally new partners. This means you can’t stop searching for them even if you fall in love for more than 2 months. Sounds crazy, doesn’t it?

Let’s consider the statistics provided by OkCupid – a popular mobile dating service. The project’s team has conducted independent research on the differences between gay and straight sex based on 3.2 million users’ personal data. Surprisingly, they reveal that gays are not even nearly as promiscuous as some people reckon.

It has been found that:

• 45% of gay people have had 5 or fewer partners (44% for straights);
• 98% of gay people have had 20 or fewer partners (99% for straights).

The much stranger thing is that almost a quarter of 252,900 straight people reported a sexual encounter with a same-sex person.

Myth №9: Gay People Can’t Bear Arms

The USA law called “Don’t ask, don’t tell” was adopted in the military in 1993. It enforced the sexual orientation’s non-disclosure for men and women of arms. Homosexuality was illegal in the US. Army, so any soldier could be fired after he or she came out.

Interesting facts concerning this law:

• some heterosexual people pretended to be gay or bisexual during the Vietnam War to not participate in fighting;
• according to the prejudice of US Department of Defense, gays could disrupt discipline in the army;
• as of 2010, 12,500 homosexuals were fired from the army;
• the US Military Department lost 363.8 million dollars due to gay specialists’ dismissal;
• the Servicemembers Legal Defense Network disclosed more than 1 million homosexuals who were serving in the US Army.

One of the most important dates for gays in the military was December 22, 2010, when then-US president Barack Obama signed a decree abolishing the law. Now gay people can bear arms without hiding the fact of their homosexuality.

Myth №10: Homosexuals are Attracted to All People of the Same Sex

A nightmare of homophobic men is to be sexually harassed by a gay man. They get scared at the sight of homosexuals and may act aggressively towards them. Actually, gay men can be attracted to straight men, but usually, they don’t want to be. The reason is obvious: a heterosexual guy will probably never reciprocate these feelings unless he is a closeted gay or bisexual.

Returning to the statistic data gathered by OkCupid, gay people are not interested in gays in 99% of cases, because only:

• 0.6% of gays have ever looked for straight guys;
• 0.1% of lesbians have ever looked for straight girls;
• 0.13% of heterosexual people’s profiles visitors were gay.

Although most homosexuals are in search for a gay partner, they have their own preferences and like only a particular type of men (or women) or even certain personalities. If taking into account the interactions between people in same-sex groups, gays usually don’t cause unpleasant incidents. For instance, 500 soldiers of US Army were interviewed after the abrogation of “Don’t ask, don’t tell” law. 75% of them told they haven’t got any problems with serving side by side with gays.

Myth №11: People of Public Professions are More Likely Gay

Women often become disappointed after their favorite actor comes out as a gay man. At first sight, it happens all the time: a lot of famous people have suddenly confess their sexual orientation lately. Also, there are a lot of unconfirmed claims of some prominent figures’ homosexuality. Each public person who doesn’t disclose his or her private life would be likely suspected of gay behavior. It raises such absurd queries as “are members of AC/DC band gays??”, “is Rihanna a lesbian?” or “is Michelle Obama a transsexual?” and so on.

Fact: celebrities’ private affairs are not really private. Fans are fond of talking and gossiping about their icons, so it may seem that the percentage of gays, bi, and trans people in Hollywood is incredibly high. In fact, it is almost the same as everywhere else. So, even though the term “AC/DC” means “someone who goes both ways” or “bisexual,” the band members with the same name did not appear to be related to LGBT issues. By the way, there are some interesting facts about other people who have never been seriously suspected of homosexuality.

One of them is Adolf Hitler. There are still ongoing debates around his sexual orientation among historians. The first group decided he was gay, the second he was asexual, the rest of them are sure in his heterosexuality. German historian Lothar Machtan provides some evidence about his gay sex in Vienna with his young friends and also later with his sergeant.

French aristocrat Georges d’Anthes is well-known as the killer of Alexander Pushkin, the worldwide famous Russian poet. Historians found intimate correspondence between him and the Dutch ambassador Jacob van Heeckeren. According to their investigation, the two men had a long and passionate relationship. Experts assume that his attraction to Pushkin’s wife was a fabrication to hide his real feelings. Unfortunately, Alexander Pushkin challenged d’Anthes and died in a duel.

Tsar Ivan the Terrible has not blamed homosexuality. All scientists agree that he was quite promiscuous. The Russian leader was married to 7 women and had many lovers. Some written sources speak of his bisexuality: he had been in a close relationship with Fyodor Basmanov, his young and handsome bodyguard.

Myth №12: Gays Use Viagra and Poppers More Often than Straight Men

Poppers are a slang term for a group of substances called alkyl nitrites (including amyl nitrite, butyl nitrite, isopropyl nitrite, etc.). Amyl nitrite was synthesized by the French scientist Antoine Jérôme Balard in 1844 and was initially intended for angina pectoris treatment, but became more popular as a recreational sexual enhancer later in the 70s.

Interestingly, the usage of these drugs was widespread mainly among homosexual men, and probably not accidentally. Those substances have the ability to relax the sphincter of the anus, which makes anal sex less painful and more pleasant for a passive partner. An active partner perceives increased sexual arousal which leads to a better erection. However, now both gays and straight people use poppers during holidays or at parties. It helps not only men but also women to feel muscle relaxation, mild euphoria, and greater pleasure.

Viagra is a popular remedy for erectile dysfunction (here and below – ED) with an active component Sildenafil. Sometimes it is used for the recreational purposes and is claimed to be more popular among gays. The 2001 study showed the differences in use of Viagra among homo- and heterosexual men. 32% of gay and bisexual men used Viagra during the past year, while only 7% of straight men did.

However, there is the controversial opinion that those surveys were conducted on the resorts or clubs because most of the respondents reported they use other drugs together with Viagra. Both straight and gay men often mix it with MDMA (ecstasy), methamphetamines and poppers – quite dangerous combinations.

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