In the media, particularly the conservative and Christian media, we often hear criticism of the “gay agenda” and the “gay lifestyle.” What exactly are these and should we really be afraid of them? In this video I came across recently LZ Granderson takes a humorous, thought-provoking look at these two phrases and what they look like in reality.
Not so long ago I would have been among those who spoke out against the threat of the “gay agenda” and decried the “gay lifestyle.” As my views transition, I see that my response arose from my fear of the unknown. I painted the homosexual community with a broad brush so that I could demonize (or “other”) and thus disregard them. It's much easier to ignore, reject, dehumanize or mistreat a group of people if you can simply lump them all into a category, paste a label on it and then associate that label with all sorts of negative and undesirable connections. So the “gay agenda” obviously seeks to overthrow all that is good and decent in American culture. The “gay lifestyle” obviously promotes debauchery of kinds that are scarcely imaginable (although Hollywood seems to try harder every year to make sure we can in fact imagine it).
This video pointed out clearly one thing that I have come to understand. To the extent that one can speak of a “gay agenda,” it is simply that those in the GLBT community deserve equal treatment before the law. Whether I agree with their lifestyle or not is irrelevant. Our constitution affirms the equality of people. Unfortunately it took us 100 years to begin to apply that to black people – a process still going on – and longer than that for women, which is also still an on-going process. What about GLBT people should exclude them from this same equality? Do they really threaten my identity, my lifestyle or my culture that seriously that they should not be treated equally? I don't think so. It is probably an overused comparison, although it has been and is reality in other parts of the world, but what if those who hold power should decide someday that being a Christian was aberrant and Christians should not receive equal treatment under the law? We can't ask for that which we are not willing to extend to others.
What do you think after watching this video? What was your perception of the “gay lifestyle” and the “gay agenda” prior to and after watching this?
Not so long ago I would have been among those who spoke out against the threat of the “gay agenda” and decried the “gay lifestyle.” As my views transition, I see that my response arose from my fear of the unknown. I painted the homosexual community with a broad brush so that I could demonize (or “other”) and thus disregard them. It's much easier to ignore, reject, dehumanize or mistreat a group of people if you can simply lump them all into a category, paste a label on it and then associate that label with all sorts of negative and undesirable connections. So the “gay agenda” obviously seeks to overthrow all that is good and decent in American culture. The “gay lifestyle” obviously promotes debauchery of kinds that are scarcely imaginable (although Hollywood seems to try harder every year to make sure we can in fact imagine it).
This video pointed out clearly one thing that I have come to understand. To the extent that one can speak of a “gay agenda,” it is simply that those in the GLBT community deserve equal treatment before the law. Whether I agree with their lifestyle or not is irrelevant. Our constitution affirms the equality of people. Unfortunately it took us 100 years to begin to apply that to black people – a process still going on – and longer than that for women, which is also still an on-going process. What about GLBT people should exclude them from this same equality? Do they really threaten my identity, my lifestyle or my culture that seriously that they should not be treated equally? I don't think so. It is probably an overused comparison, although it has been and is reality in other parts of the world, but what if those who hold power should decide someday that being a Christian was aberrant and Christians should not receive equal treatment under the law? We can't ask for that which we are not willing to extend to others.
What do you think after watching this video? What was your perception of the “gay lifestyle” and the “gay agenda” prior to and after watching this?
No comments:
Post a Comment