Attention minorities: You should be open to changing who you are
by Matt | June 27th, 2007 |A community member in Mankato, Minnesota, writes a letter to the editor on the Soulforce Equality Ride visit to Bethany Lutheran College.
He makes the argument that Soulforce “should be more open to change,” for our “viewpoints” and our “lifestyle:”
Was SoulForce just as willing to become less liberal and more conservative, to change not only their viewpoint but also their lifestyle? I doubt it.
Okay. Okay.
You hear that minorities? You should be more open to changing who you are to fit everyone else!
A quick guide for minorities wanting to take the letter writer’s wise advice:
- All people of color… You should be more open to being “more white.”
- Hispanics… You should be more open to totally forgetting your heritage and adopting a European one.
- Native Americans… Oh, totally, forget the red man thing, drop your religion and forget your language.
- Women… You need to butch it up! Change your feminine “lifestyle” and be more like real humans (read: men).
- And all us gay people… Yes, we so totally need to straighten up.
Conclusion of the letter? Writer’s definition of “conservative” = Everyone must look, act and think the exact same way and that is: Straight, White, Protestant, Anglo-Saxon Male.
Technorati Tags: Mankato, Bethany Lutheran College, Soulforce, Equality Ride
2 Responses to “Attention minorities: You should be open to changing who you are”
Matt, may I remind you of something you said previously?
http://www.interstateq.com/archives/2136/#comment-41686
Especially this statement:
“Would I want my children exposed to LGBT people who are drug addicts, alcoholics, in the club-scene or who do other illicit activities? Absolutely NOT.”
Or, to put it differently, if your perception of how gay people act was Mike Signorile, especially in regard to Tyler Whitney, do you think you’d be wanting gays to consider making a change or two?
We have entirely too much of a habit in the gay community of screaming “homophobia” at the drop of a hat, when that should be one of the last things to which we get. A big part of the reason, in my opinion, is that homosexuality has been used as an excuse for far too many unpopular other things — drug use, promiscuity, antireligious beliefs, leftist politics, hate behavior against other people you don’t like — and thus has become, in the minds of many people, a disreputable “lifestyle”. Screaming “homophobia” has been a convenient way of avoiding confrontation over your antireligious or drug-using beliefs by shifting the conversation away from them and onto your sexual orientation, which may be marginally more popular.
Like Log Cabin will no doubt tell you, there are plenty of Republicans out there who would be far more friendly towards gays if they weren’t convinced that, by doing so, they were endorsing tax increases, socialism, antireligious strictures, abortions, antimilitary rhetoric, and the innumerable other pieces of baggage that have been piled onto the gay train. Indeed, the reason that coming out works so well is because it allows people to realize that gays are NOT all like the stereotype.
In short, cut the guy a break. Sure, he may just hate gays, period; however, on the other hand, what he may hate is what he thinks goes WITH being gay.
Do you really want to scream “homophobe” and imply “racist”, likely shutting down discussion completely, before you’re sure?
By North Dallas Thirty on Jun 27, 2007
North Dallas Thirty? i pretty much love you. A lot.
“We have entirely too much of a habit in the gay community of screaming “homophobia” at the drop of a hat.”
This is one of my biggest pet peeves EVER. Sometimes, yes, people are homophobic. But i find that a lot of times (and i’m generalizing here) the gay community just uses that against people who don’t necessarily agree with them.
But i just basically wanted to say that i agree.
By Sarah on Jun 28, 2007