Author: Superdrewby
Date: March 2002
Superdrewby has increasingly been receiving a wider audience than just gay, bi or gay curious guys and girls. Over the last couple of months there has been a steady increase in people logging on to read the fitness section of the site by straight guys and straight women who like to view the picture of cute guys. It may also surprise you to know that many of the straight guys actually e-mail me to say hi and ask questions about different fitness issues. The straight women however tend not to e-mail me or send me icq's, instead they have been posting message about my site to other people's message boards. A common theme among their comments is that homosexuality is generally OK, but they still find it a little on the nose. The straight guys that take the time to write are pretty open and comfortable about who and what they are, or they wouldn't write to me!
Now this got me to thinking about what equality really means and what we actually want when we say we want equal rights. Now there is the obvious of legal recognition of same sex relationships, equal age of consent for same sex consensual sex and legal protection against discrimination and vilification. But then I started to think about the more important things like being able to walk down the street holding my same sex partner's hand without fear of violence or the dirty looks. The ability to be able to go into any pub or club and act the same way that heterosexual couple do towards each other, showing affection, a quick peck on the lips or a hug. These things mean so much to me and that is the true test of equality in society.
Gay rights have come along way since the 1970's with Stonewall, Mardi Gras and Pride marches here held to bring attention to our minority. But just how much has society actually changed and just how much equality is there? A recent survey of people's tolerance towards homosexuality has shown that we have come along way but there is still a huge way to go.
Australian moral view on homosexuality |
Less than 28% of the population believes that homosexuality is not wrong at all, while a whopping 48% still believes that homosexuality is always wrong. 48% percent of our society still believes that we are morally and socially wrong. This is reflected in the moral high horse politicians that many of us have looking after our countries. In Australia the moral right is very much controlled by the Church, even though we are supposedly a secular society. The delineation between church and state often gets very blurred especially as the leaders of our church and our government coexist in their views and their teachings.
It is not all that much better around the world with the vast majority of the population believing that homosexuality is wrong at all times as shown in the following list of tolerance towards homosexuality. One of the largest and most insidious problems that we as a gay and lesbian community face is the false view that homosexuals are pedophiles. This popular myth has been strengthened by both the media and the church is a total sham. Statistics time and time again prove that most pedophiles actually identify as heterosexual, just as the vast majority of child sex abuse is perpetrated by heterosexual males. It has nothing to do with homosexuality, but we have to deal with the mistrust and fear that is common in the community against homosexuals.
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Because of the stigma of being gay, people who are or identify as gay are less likely to be teachers or have positions involving children. It is just far too easy for a parent who feels strongly against homosexuality to claim that the teacher acted inappropriately towards a child, thus effectively ending there career. Even though the teacher is totally innocent and has done nothing wrong, people believe that a homosexual is capable of also being a pedophile. It is a damaging and distressing part of human society.
Historically homosexuality was not challenged until the 15th - 17th centuries when the church needed to get rid of a troublesome faction which included a lot of homosexual men. To achieve this homosexuality was demonized and included as a mortal sin, even through the Bible itself does not specifically mention homosexuality and the passages which are used to discredit homosexuality are taken out of both historical and present day context, twisted to achieve the aims of the "moral" majority.
The effects of the moral right and the churches condemnation of homosexuality is well documented over the last couple of centuries. Homosexuals were and still are branded heretics by the church and were in past centuries murdered, while these days homosexuals are branded as deviants and excommunicated from the Catholic Church. IN other religions homosexuals are stoned to death or imprisoned for life, especially in Muslim countries.
Societal views on homosexuality have caused a problem of almost epidemic proportions of youth suicide with almost half of all youth suicides believed to be caused by issues to do with sexuality. By promoting an unequal viewpoint of homosexuality in society this has resulted in tens of thousands of young men and women trying to and taking their own lives. Equality is important not just for legal recognition but also for the well being of our youth!
Little by little the tolerance towards homosexuality is changing as can be seen, but there is still a long way to go before there is full equality and acceptance. Form my point of view equality will only happen when homosexuality is viewed as a totally normal part of life, where we can walk down the street holding hands without mothers dragging their children away from us, where people don't bat an eyelid at same sex couples. Sure it may be an utopian view of society and will probably not happen for many more generations, but by looking at the statistics, it will happen!