You have a tendency to hyperbolize. Of course they affect you in some way. Religion affects you - you can see it in the news any given week. You've probably never met a religious person - it defines their life quite strongly. They live by those moral codes. These are serious convictions, which influence behaviour. Of course sexuality influences behaviour, it's almost too basic a point that anyone who isn't asexual should understand. A person derives their character from all these things - race, religion, gender.
You're working under the assumption that essentially everybody doesn't interact with anyone else in society on a meaningful basis.