Quote by Seeker4
I wonder if you'll hear from anyone who actually fits what you're talking about. Ensorceled and I don't. I have been a supporter since the United Church of Canada went through a divisive battle over whether openly gay people could be ordained. To their everlasting credit, the church's General Council voted not to block ordination of gay people and the first openly gay minister (there were others before but not open, though one in my area was a worst kept secret) was ordained shortly thereafter. His husband, also a United Church minister, later become the church's first gay moderator. Sadly, my own congregation came down on the wrong side and that's probably part of why I eventually drifted away to Unitarian Universalism, where I joined a Welcoming congregation (some faiths/denominations also call it Affirming) whose chaplain performed the second same-sex marriage in London (Metropolitan Community Church went first).
Back on topic, straight on LGBTQ+ hate crime is one of the most terrible shames of Western society, though it seems especially strong in the US with some spillover into Canada (we had protests over drag queen storytime here in London, Ontario this year). Since I have been an ally since my teens and tentatively started identifying as bi myself in the past few years, I am really not sure why it sparks such hatred and violence. I am simply not plugged in enough to that segment of society. I think only race inspires as much animosity these days. Part of it may be that as more and more of society supports LGBTQ friendly policies (e.g. a decade after Canada allowed same-sex marriage, something like 70% of Canadians were in favour, not sure of current numbers) the opponents are feeling isolated and besieged in their opinions and are lashing out. But why there are still opponents at all, why people cannot accept people as people without worrying about who they sleep with or how they express their gender, remains a mystery to me. Which means, of course, I am really not sure of what the solutions are beyond taking names and kicking asses when appropriate.
when i posted this i expected it to me more of a litmus test than anything else. bit sad about that. i would like to get some honest feedback on the subject and not have it be an echo chamber - maybe some actual real discussion on the subject. and sadly, taking names and kicking asses is not a viable solution, or i'd be out doing it (dressed as Batman, probably). thing is, i've put a lot of energy into trying to change minds in non-confrontational ways, but it usually leaves me frustrated, that is what this thread is about - me being frustrated.
we fairly recently bought a house. it's in a nice hood. we are good neighbors. we keep the place looking nice, we're not loud, we are friendly and helpful (the woman next door is elderly so i usually mow her front lawn when i'm doing ours). couple down the street hate us. have since day one, the only real reason i can think of is that we're lesbians (confirmed by one of our neighbors). it's not a good feeling, although i can't say it's one i'm not used to. i mean, yes, we do a small, non-obtrusive, pride flag during Pride, but we're not in your face about our sexuality - that said, we are open about it. i refuse to let one family dictate if i can kiss my wife or hold her hand in public. no oral sex, though. we keep that stuff inside.
at work, we have a lot of diversity. different backgrounds and cultures, i am fairly certain that some of the women and some of their kids lean towards being gay, but are 'forbidden' to express it among their peers or anyone else, for that matter. it's quite . it does make me sad but i can't/won't push the issue. not my right to out someone.
back to the topic at hand. the backlash is real. for every step forward we take towards acceptance, the fear seems to grow. marriage was a biggie and apparently quite threatening to some people. the trans community starting to become more visible is the same thing. it's not like there are suddenly more trans people - it's just that more people are getting comfortable finally being who they are. not so long ago, drag was pretty much an acceptable thing - now, all of a sudden, there is legislation outlawing it. it's mind-bending, to be honest. how is that even harmful?