These may be a dying breed, but that doesn't mean that homophobia is gone. Something I have noticed is the frequency of posts agreeing with and/or supporting gay rights, but still exhibiting homophobia*. Most of the posts I'm talking about start out with some variance of the line below, and continue into something listed in the quote box.
"I don't mind gays [adopting/getting married/having pride/existing] BUT/AND..."
Quote Box
"...I don't want them acting gay around me."
"...I am not gay."
"...I have gay friends."
"...I use the adjective 'gay' as a synonym to 'stupid'."
"...I am not gay."
"...I have gay friends."
"...I use the adjective 'gay' as a synonym to 'stupid'."
The last one is not an actual quote, but rather an observation of mine put into quote form.
Now, what is with all these disclaimers and comments? People seem to like hiding behind "I support your rights" to continue more subtle homophobic behavior. Seriously, how much more contradicting can you get to say "I don't mind gays having equal rights, BUT I don't want them to act gay around me"? They preach equality for homosexuals and then claim that LGBTQ should just "fit in". I wouldn't call that equality.
Sure, I'm glad there are less people saying outright "NO MARRIAGE FOR YOU mad ". But equality isn't just about equal rights--it's about equal treatment. I'd love to be able to marry another woman, but I would also love to be able to hold hands with her in public without getting dirty looks and people asking me to bow to their oversensitive squick level. I would love for people to not feel the need to add the disclaimer that they aren't gay, as if the mere thought of being assumed homosexual is icky and horrific. People assume I'm straight every single ******** day, and I'm not retching over it.
Then there's "I have gay friends". Good for you. Does this automatically make you more open or tolerant of gays? No, it doesn't. Saying "I can't be a homophobe, I have gay friends" does not serve as a barrier.
And finally, "gay" used to mean "stupid". Really, why? If you think "stupid" is such a boring word, get a thesaurus. There are 64 words that are synonymous or related to "stupid", not one of them being "gay". It's plain rude to use it like that. And please don't give me that "words are just words" nonsense; words aren't just words when they slam a minority group.
All I'm getting from all this is "Sure, you can have your rights. But have them over there, away from me and my comfort zone", as if one group's level of comfort is superior to another group's right to equality.
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* Homophobia is not just fearing or loathing homosexuals. It is any discriminatory behavior, action or predisposition against homosexuals.
Merriam-Webster definition of [url=http://www.m-w.com/cgi-bin/dictionary?va=homophobia]Homophobia
irrational fear of, aversion to, or discrimination against homosexuality or homosexuals
Merriam-Webster definition of [url=http://www.m-w.com/dictionary/discrimination]Discrimination
1 a : the act of discriminating b : the process by which two stimuli differing in some aspect are responded to differently
2 : the quality or power of finely distinguishing
3 a : the act, practice, or an instance of discriminating categorically rather than individually b : prejudiced or prejudicial outlook, action, or treatment <racial discrimination>
2 : the quality or power of finely distinguishing
3 a : the act, practice, or an instance of discriminating categorically rather than individually b : prejudiced or prejudicial outlook, action, or treatment <racial discrimination>
So please don't answer this post with "that's not homophobia".
