I heard an interesting talk from Dr. Alice Dreger this spring about how homosexuality has been approached in the medical sphere over the past century or so. Dr. Dreger's research focuses on what she refers to as "norm-challenging bodies", including disorders of sexual development (e.g. intersex), conjoinment, dwarfism, and cleft lip.
Her talk at MSU touched on the issues related to medicalizing homosexuality, and how LGBT advocacy has led to more progressive attitudes in the medical field towards sexual minorities.
Dr. Dreger explained a general shift in societal views of homosexuality over the centuries:
Sin (pre-19th century) → Crime (19th century) → Disease (20th century) → Identity (21st century)
