Straight But “Gay Friendly”

Unlike many heterosexuals, I have been labeled as being gay because:

• I’m not attracted to young women
• I don’t treat women as sex objects
• I prefer the arts over sports
• I’m comfortable with having gay friends.

Because of this misconception, I have endured hatred and abuse as if I were gay. (Name calling, dirty looks, physical threats, etc.) For this reason, I feel like I have a better understanding of what it is like to be gay in southeastern America.

For one, it must be hell to be ostracized from family who do not accept one’s sexual orientation. And from my experience, it seems like one is a moving target for hatred, usually by groups of ignorant people.

Now, I understand and respect the religious aspect to the subject. I know some people feel in their hearts that homosexuality is a mortal sin, and there is nothing one can say or do to change their minds.

That said, that does not give them the right to launch verbal or physical attacks on someone simply because they are “different.”

Personally, I don’t think sexual orientation should be a topic at all. I don’t introduce myself as the “heterosexual Shannon McDowell.” I think sex should be a private matter and not a label to further separate us into smaller groups.

But such as it is, homosexuality has become part of one’s public identity these days. I do not feel that gays should go “back to the closet.” But nor do I think they should parade naked down main streets during Gay Pride Week. There needs to be a balance.

I would like to believe that homosexuals are beginning to find it easier to gain acceptance in the mainstream’s view. Whether or not they were born that way or if it is a chosen lifestyle, I believe in freedom of expression and freedom from harm due to differences, whether sexual orientation, religious, race, or any other label that pigeonholes us.

Whether you are gay, straight, bisexual, or non-sexual, we need to learn to live with one another, assimilate into a single culture. Perhaps this is utopia-thinking, but we cannot go on attacking one another because of our sexual orientations.

If not acceptance, than tolerance. Let’s look for common ground and try to make peace for a change. Treat each other with respect and stop the fighting.

Easier said than done, huh?