[HPFGU-OTChatter] Re: Homosexuality

[Sheryll Townsend]

--- Neil Ward <neilward at dircon.co.uk> wrote:
> Ender said:
> 
> <<I haven't seriously dated any ment recently and
> one of my closest friends
> made a statement along the lines of "We'll accept
> any boyfriend you
> choose...or girlfriend."  And i'm thinking "Where
> did that come from?"
>   I haven't dated any men recently, but i haven't
> dated any women either, so
> why was homosexuality assumed in this case? >>
> 
> They didn't assume homosexuality, they simply
> allowed for the possibility,
> which is refreshing.  I think that's a wonderfully
> supportive thing for a
> friend to say.  If you were gay, wouldn't you feel
> that you could confide in
> that friend and that they would love you just the
> same?  If you weren't,
> would you really feel offended by the fact that your
> friend allowed for it?
> Fear of rejection by friends and family is a really
> big deal for some gay
> people.

I agree with Neil here, it's refreshing and, in my
experience, unusual to have friends/family have
display this supportiveness. Though I do, I know the
rest of my family is very homophobic (a fact I
discovered when they went positively ballistic after
seeing me on television raising the rainbow flag over
City Hall at our Pride Festival 2 years ago). A few
months ago my daughter was bemoaning the fact that she
didn't have a date for one of her school dances. My
response? Don't you have a boyfriend you can go with?
A girlfriend? Her response? Mommmmmm!!!! 

I've had interesting experiences since deciding to
volunteer with our festival. I've had the local GLBT
paper consider writing an article about me after my
election to the festival's Board of Directors (from
the point of view of: why is 'that' person on the
Board and what do we care what 'they' think). The
article was never written as we let them know that a
reverse-discrimination lawsuit would be pending if
they did. I've had women try to pick me up in bars
even though I insist to them that I'm straight. I had
someone apologise for outing me as straight. The woman
who nominated me to Board told me I was being very
brave when I said I would accept. She said people
would assume I was a lesbian simply by virtue of
working with the GLBT comminity. My response? I told
her people looked at the fact that she had 5 children
and assumed she was straight (she was married before
coming out, very common among lesbians here).

I'm rambling at this point, I know. I'm also biting my
tongue and trying not to simply fling down on paper
how I feel about working with the GLBT community at
this point. It has been a less than pleasant
experience, but one that has nothing to do with
peoples sexual orientation and everything to do with
personalities - so I will shut up and go do laundry or
whatever I am avoiding by checking my email.

Sheryll, definitely not working with Pride next year
(though I have said that in the month preceding the
festival for the last 4 years!)


=====
"Do not meddle in the affairs of dragons, for thou art crunchy and taste good with ketchup."

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