Sometimes, comments aren’t “stupid” in the realm of homophobia, but outright hateful and unfathomable. What reaction should a gay man have to comments such as this one?

oh and by the way another couple of gays killed in my neighbourhood for being gay, that is music to my ears. from a proud homophobic. —k.ltwills.r495@googlemail.com

Outrage? Fear? Anxiety? Hate?

This Edition of Stupid Things People Say About Gays gave me great pause. I couldn’t decide if I could categorize it as “stupid” or if it was just a “different way of thinking.” My fortune cookie at lunch today did say, “Your perception will switch.” Interesting that it didn’t say change, but “switch.” I was momentarily reminded of the song by Fem 2 Fem from the 90’s. “Switch, I finally tried it, feels good…” The article I pull this quote from appeared in Christianity Today.

There have been numerous comments over the last few weeks regarding gay people hijacking the civil rights movement (apparently no one told these people that civil rights is all inclusive, not just for select groups). At any rate, many of those accusations have gone on to say that homosexuals have the exact same rights as everyone else.

Civil Marriage is law. To deny any person the equal protection of the law, without due process abridges “the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States.” In order for the law to deny such civil right, the State holds the burden of proof to show that such relationships would detriment society. Mr. Kolasinski’s efforts to shift the burden of proof on those denied such liberties is false, misleading and improper under the 14th Amendment, Loving and good common sense.

Recently, a group of “Christians” were run out of San Francisco’s Castro District by a “Gay Mob”. I love the elevation this story has received in calling it a “gay mob.” Video footage of the incident shows a group of people being escorted by police while a group of homosexuals (and/or those supporting homosexual rights) are chanting things such as “stay out of our neighborhoods if you don’t like us.” Christian right-wing organizations are appalled and outraged that they were not allowed by this mob to express their religious freedom. Well, there’s a taste of your own medicine for you. This incident has inspired this issue of “Stupid Things People Say About Gays”…

***Content Warning***

Sifting through all the negative stereotypes and idiotic comments regarding gay people has sent me on a path of self discovery. During my quest, I discovered that putting hand warmers in your underwear on a cold night feels really good, I also discovered that there are short winded homophobics in the world.

The small amount of media coverage regarding the murder of Moses “Teish” Cannon has been confusing at best and unremarkable at most. What is known is that Teish, who self-identified as a woman, was murdered in Syracuse, New York on November 16, 2008 after being invited by a family friend to a party. Currently, the only motive reported for the terrible crime is that she was “gay.”

Peaceful demonstrations on the part of homosexuals took place all over the country on November 15, 2008. The demonstrations where part of Join the Impact’s National Day of Protest. We must remember that educating our governments people will effectually educate our government.

Legal definitions have changed tremendously throughout history. Our founders smartly wrote the Constitution and Declaration of Independence so that laws could morph into a working, united, equal system. If legal definitions did not evolve and change, the words “negro” and “colored” would still be used to define “African Americans” by law and the word “property” would still refer to African Americans.

I hope this momentum lasts in the gay community. A National Day of Protest has been planned for November 15th at 1:30 CT (check here for your here local information).