Category: Anti-Gay

Beyond Gay: The Politics of Pride

On By Michel McDonaldIn Anti-Gay, Gay, gay pride, Gay Rights1 Comment

I know I know, you don’t have to tell me, I’m very late for the conversation since this documentary came out in 2009 but I’m just now seeing it for the first time on Showtime.  We don’t get out to the movies very often and when we do we have to both agree on what we see which means we don’t get to see a lot of movies.  So… here I am in mid 2011 just now seeing this movie for the first time.

ho·mo·pho·bi·a Noun /ˌhōməˈfōbēə/

  1. An extreme and irrational aversion to homosexuality and homosexual people

I found the definition for homophobia so that people will know the exact definition and know I am not making it up.  “An extreme and irrational aversion”…  Note the word irrational.  That is in the dictionary.  It says that your aversion to homosexuality is irrational.  You know if the dictionary says you are being irrational then it’s time to cool your jets.

When I started watching this movie tonight I didn’t know they were going to really get into all of the gory details about how other countries treat their gays.  I thought it was just them documenting their organization of the gay pride parade and festival in Canada and that it would be pride for 90 minutes.  Instead, they bring us to Moscow, Serbia, Sri Lanka US and Canada.

“There are over 80 countries across the globe that still criminalize homosexuality.  7 or 8 countries that actually uphold the death penalty.”

These are the words that are shocking to me.  I know that there were countries that criminalize people for holding hands or just for looking or acting gay.  In Sri Lanka it’s a 10 year prison sentence, yes still.  Just for being gay in public.  In India and in Africa lesbian women have to worry about corrective rape.

“‘Corrective rape’ is a criminal practice, whereby men rape lesbian women, purportedly as a means of “curing” the woman of her sexual orientation.”

This one woman told a story about how they rape lesbian women for hours, it’s pure torture to be raped like this especially since most of them are still virgins at the time of the rape.  It’s not only painful to penetrate them but it’s also very demeaning and you know, mentally painful.  It’s painful for me to even think about it.

In Moscow Russia you cannot have a gay pride, the mayor denies their applications and says that he will continue to deny them this year, next year, 5 years from now and 10 years from now.  As long as he is in office he will continue to deny their gay pride festival so they have to go to secret locations and have their quick 5 minute gay pride then pack it all up before the police show up.

In the middle east, if you are gay you are going to be pushing daisies very soon because they do not, absolutely do not want you living among them.  They will kill you and it is perfectly legal to do so.  I seem to recall the president of Iran Mahmoud Ahmadinejad being asked in a press conference in the United States a few years ago about the gay iranian people and he said “We don’t have gay people” and everyone laughed at him.  He was very serious, he wasn’t expecting to hear something so bold as being laughed at as if he had just told a joke.  They do have gays, they are all in hiding, married with children and pretending to be straight to stay alive.  That is no way to live.

People are dying and people are being held in prisons for 10 years and being raped to correct them.  This is why we have gay pride.  It’s to make people aware of intolerance and to send a message that we are here, we are queer, get used to it.  Our message is to get over it and stop killing us and treating us like we are dogs because we were all born this way just like some of us were born with red, brown and blond hair; brown, blue and green eyes; black, brown, red, yellow, pink and white skin.  We were all born this way so just get over it.

My definition, if I may be so bold to give it, is that homophobic people aren’t afraid of gay people, they just don’t understand why we are all so happy and “gay” about being ourselves when they have to live the way their parents told them they have to live.  You see, I believe that all of those anti-gay people are only anti-gay because they cannot be gay themselves, they are jealous because we are living the lives they feel they should have led so they are taking out their aggression on gay people because they are too coward to be openly gay.

Other homophobic people are that way because they are so ignorant because they were told by their pastor that because it says in the bible that being gay is a sin.  Well, so is being fat and so is being lazy and so is judging other people because that isn’t for them to do, that is for “God” to do.  You don’t have to talk to gay people if you don’t like them but by acting out against them you yourself are sinning and will go to this mythical place called Hell in our stead.  So enjoy.

You know, before I watched this documentary, I have to admit that I didn’t know all of this information.  I know to some degree but not every thing they were talking about.  So I come from this a little more educated and enlightened.  I’m going to watch it again the next time I see it on Showtime so I can be sure to pay close attention so the information stays with me.

My uncle was so bold to ask me one year, my visit just so happened to be around gay pride month where it was all over the news.  He asked me plain and simple.  “Why do gay people need to have their ‘Gay pride parade’?  The mexican’s don’t have a parade to be proud to be mexican, the blacks don’t have a parade to be proud to be black, so why do gay people do it?”

See, this movie is a great way to explain to them what I cannot explain from memory.  First of all I didn’t answer him.  I knew that it would be detrimental if I responded with an ignorant point of view because all it takes is one idiot (me) telling people the wrong thing and they tell a friend and they tell a friend and so on.  So I reserved my answer for a later time when I was more educated on the subject.  Here we are about 9 years later and I may just be ready to answer that question.

I won’t bring it up unless asked again though because when it comes to this type of conversation with my family, I get interrupted a lot and am constantly told I’m wrong and I’m not going to put myself in that situation so screw em.  And that’s another issue, they ask but they really don’t want to know the real answer.  They don’t want to know the full details so they tell you to edit yourself because they are so afraid I’m going to start talking about anal sex.  It’s not all about sex people.  It’s about freedom and about not being killed by your government or put in prison for simply being alive.

Wow this is longer than I thought it would be.  Ok so to wrap this up, it’s a very good documentary which helps explain a ton about not just the gay pride itself but also give you some historical and statistical facts.  Just watch it.  Here is the trailer.

In Your Face!

On By Michel McDonaldIn Anti-GayLeave a comment

You know how some people are homophobic but they don’t throw it in your face but you know they are because they give you a disapproving glare or they make snarky comments when referring to your sexuality?  Well, I have one particular family member who is sort of like that.  The whole gay issue is never brought up, like it’s so shameful that we just don’t talk about it out of fear that it will tear our relationship apart because of differing opinions or something.

I was talking with said family member on the phone today who was the only family member by the way who ever calls me on my birthday and she was 6 days late calling me.  But the subject of Chips deceased cousins relationship came up and she asked how long they were together and I said 27 years.  “Wow, how long have you guys been together” she asks which I respond 17 years. “WOW!”

I get no gratification for throwing it in her face that I am in a long-term relationship but when you tell a person like her who is against gay relationships that you have been together for 17 years and they have a “WOW” response, it makes you feel good.  Like “IN YOUR FACE” or something.  Not a mean in your face but you know.

I would say that I am the black sheep to half of my family because of my sexuality which if you think about it is such a stupid reason to be the black sheep.  I mean, I was born this way, you don’t make me a black sheep because I was born with hazel eyes and brown hair do you?  Of course not because that is absurd.  So why make me the black sheep because of my sexuality which I have no control over just like I have no control over the fact that I have male pattern baldness.

You know what I say to society, I’m here, I’m queer, get effing used to it biatches!  I’m in a committed long-term monogamous relationship with a person with whom I love and nothing anyone says about it is going to change that.  Get over your insecurities about gay people and realize we aren’t going to change.  We do have loving normal relationships just like all of you straight people.  The only difference is that we can’t get each other pregnant, which if you think about it is more of a blessing cause who wants that?  Not me!

I am so sick of people judging me so yeah, I get a little excited when someone who doesn’t approve has a moment when they are impressed by it.  As if I was ever seeking approval, I’m not but you know what I mean.

No matter what the circumstances are, she is my family and I respect her even though she may not respect me for being gay but goddamnit, it’s my life.  Be grateful I’m happy and I’m not miserable in a relationship with a woman who I am not sexually attracted to with children who probably hate me for taking out my aggression on them for having to be stuck in that marriage just to please your homophobic ass.

That’s all I have to say. *Steps off of my soap box*

Uganda’s “Kill The Gays” bill

On By Michel McDonaldIn Anti-GayLeave a comment

Dear Friend,

I just signed a petition demanding that Ugandan President Musevini veto the “Kill The Gays” bill should it be passed in Parliament.

We just learned the “kill the gays” bill – a death sentence for LGBT people in Uganda – could come up for a vote in the next 72 hours if we don’t act now.

Conservative leaders are trying hard to push the bill forward before the millions like us who oppose it have a chance to speak out.  If we can create a massive international outcry, theres a chance to stop this bill from becoming law.

This hateful bill appears to be a political diversion, a way to distract from the legitimate grievances of pro-democracy activists, who have been beaten, teargassed, jailed, and even killed in recent weeks.

There are only days left to make sure your voice is heard.  Will you join me in demanding the Ugandan President Musevini veto the “Kill The Gays” bill should it be passed in Parliament?  Sign and share this urgent petition:

http://www.allout.org/uganda

I Am NOT Big Gay Al!

On By Michel McDonaldIn Anti-GayLeave a comment

You know how a certain minority always get picked on for being that specific minority?  Well, this is one minority who is 40 and is still being picked on.

I haven’t been bothered by anyone in a long time.  The last time anyone bothered me for being… well… alive was when these people were living in the section-8 apartment building in my neighborhood.  They chose us specifically to pick on because they knew we were gay and we were their way, at least I think anyway, to fly under the radar themselves by choosing someone else to pick on.  That’s what bullies do after all, they know they have their own skeletons so they find someone else to put the focus on to take it off of themselves.  Oddly enough, the guy who was constantly picking on us was gay.  Yes, you guessed it, skeletons.

So they moved out because Darrin found out who the building owner was and contacted him and told him all about the troubles that that guy, nay, that family have caused in the neighborhood, so the whole lot of them were evicted.  It wasn’t just because of Darrin, it was also because the cops had been called one too many times to deal with him/them.

Over the last couple of years that apartment building has had many people coming and going.  Recently however there have been some new people who have moved in who have proved to be nothing but trash.  They sit out in front of the apartment building with music blaring inside.  I normally don’t see an issue with that if they aren’t bothering anyone but now they are bothering me.

I rode my bike to a family members house to go bike riding with her.  As we were riding back to her house when we were coming home they shouted something at us.  I didn’t understand what they were saying and decided I didn’t really care.  If you let them know they are upsetting you then they have the power.  They know what buttons to press and will continue to press that button because it excites them.  When I was riding home from her house they shouted at me again but I still didn’t understand what they were saying because I ignored them.

Not too long after that I decided I needed some groceries so I rode my bike to the store.  That time I understood what they were saying.  They were calling me Big Gay Al.  They were saying it so fast before that I just couldn’t understand but I got the message.

Why are they calling me big gay al you ask?  Well, I’m, for the lack of a better word, Big.  Big Gay Al is a character in the Comedy Central show South Park.  His character at the beginning of the series represented all of the gay animals who had been abandoned by their kind because they were gay.  Big Gay Al rescues them and helps them be who they are by supporting them.

Still… what does that have to do with me?  Well, I have a toy chihuahua who I walk outside in the front of the house at least 10-20 times per day.  Toy Chihuahua’s are typically a dog that you see on tv that rich and/or people carry around like accessories these days as are most small dogs.

So these idiots see that I’m fat and they just assume that I’m gay based on I don’t know what because I certainly don’t act gay and I don’t think I look gay, whatever gay looks like.  They see that I have a gay-ish type of dog and they target me to call me Big Gay Al.

So far it is just today that I was called that but tonight, as I write this, they have taken it a step further by banging on our door and running away like little cowards.  I can see how this is going to end.  I have already suggested to Darrin to call the owner of the building and let him know what he has living in that apartment building.

Since they have moved into the neighborhood, a few houses have been robbed.  Our tenant and the house next door to us.  Why did they skip us?  Maybe because they see that I’m home all the time so they don’t bother me.  I have a feeling that these jerks are the people who have been robbing houses and wonder how long before they try to rob us now that they “see” me.

We have lived in this neighborhood for 11 years, I don’t see why I have to put up with this bullcrap.  I used to be able to ride my bike (or walk) to the grocery store on Eye St. and back but now I have to ride out of my way to avoid these jerks.  That’s not right that I should have to change my life to avoid anyone.

I’m waiting for the “it gets better” speech…

NOM Sign: Lynch Gay Couples To Save Marriage

On By Michel McDonaldIn Anti-Gay, Gay Rights, NOH8, Political, Religion4 Comments

NOM Sign: Lynch Gay Couples To Save Marriage | The Bilerico Project

Please read the above article for more information.

Ok well, I’m really just stunned by this.  You really have to read the article in the link provided at the top and watch the videos that are in that article.

This guy who holds these hate signs is very uneducated.  He seriously thinks that god is going to destroy us much like he destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah.  If that were true then Canada and Britain would be gone because they allow gay marriage.  God hasn’t destroyed them.

He also seems to think that being gay is a choice and that he has been tempted and knew it was wrong so he chose not to act on it.  …  I don’t even know what to say to that.  First of all, I don’t know any gay men or even any straight women who would be attracted to that. Pahleez !  Barf!

By making this sign he has threatened the lives of every LGBT person alive.  Is that what god wants?  Does god want people that he allegedly “created” to be hung because this guy doesn’t agree with how they live their lives?

He says in the video that it’s the same thing with people who have artificial insemination.  So, women who have to have their husbands sperm artificially inseminated because their sex is not working to make them pregnant, despite the fact that they are straight are no better than gay people?  Should they be hung too?

Him making and holding that sign makes him no better than a terrorist.  That is indeed a terrorist threat.  Isn’t this something that the cop standing behind him should be thinking about rather than guarding him?  That cop needs to arrest him for making terrorist threats against people.  People who are just doing what nature has told them to do, be themselves.

When I started to type this out I was speechless, I guess not.

Boycotting The Bahamas

On By Michel McDonaldIn Anti-Gay, BoycottLeave a comment

Last night HBO had the Rosie Cruise documentary called All Aboard.  I don’t know the exact title.  Anyway, I watched it and I was close to tears through most of it because I was just so happy for all of those gay families that they could have kids, this one family was these 2 gay men with 5 kids.  I just thought that was so great.

The main reason I was close to tears and in some cases I was tearing is because when my mom confronted me about being gay when I was 17 just before she kicked me out of the house, she told me “Do me a favor, don’t ever have kids”.  What a cruel thing to say.  It touched my heart that these people are able to have children and their teenage kids stand up for their parents and they don’t let anyone give them shit.

The cruise started out in New York and they went all the way to the Bahamas and back.  When they got to Key West Florida, not only did they have out the welcome mat but they had a parade for them.  But as soon as they got to the Bahamas they were met by protesters from the Bahama churches.

Now I realize that those protesters do not represent the whole of the Bahamas but seeing that turnout turns me off.  I will never ever in my life go to the Bahamas knowing there are that many homophobes running around allowed to breed.  And I would expect that anyone who is gay would boycott this place.

There are lots of other places you can go like Jamaica or heck, Florida.  Who really needs to go to the Bahamas that bad when we have beaches in our own country.  Heck I would go to Venice Beach over going to the Bahamas any day.  At least in Venice Beach you got muscle men working out in full view of everyone and best of all you are keeping your money local.

My cousin got married in the Bahamas the day before my birthday and I was invited to go but I didn’t have the money.  I wanted to go, I would’ve loved to spend my birthday in the Bahamas but I’m glad now that I didn’t go because I was able to see their true colors thanks to the Rosie cruise.

Thank You Pepsi

On By Michel McDonaldIn Anti-Gay, NOH8, PoliticalLeave a comment

photo715Last week, the American Family Association launched a boycott of PepsiCo. The AFA boycott is based, in part, on the PepsiCo Foundation’s support of PFLAG’s Straight for Equality in the Workplace project.

I got this email today from PFLAG saying to call the Pepsi Company to thank them and tell them that I will only buy Pepsi products from now on because I am a PFLAG member.

I will, but before I do I would just like to rant about something.  Why is it that the AFA hates gay people so much?  I mean, what did we do to them but be gay?  We didn’t hurt their chances of having equal rights like they did us.  So why are they boycotting a company for saying hey, we like gay people and we support them in the work place?  All gay people ever wanted was equal rights, to be treated like a human being and not be told that we can’t have a piece of paper that says that we are joined together as one.  That we can do our taxes as a couple and not individuals.

I’m just really confused.  Is this not the year 2009?  Have gay people been around throughout time?  Yes they have.  Michelangelo was gay.  I can’t think right now of all the gay people throughout history but there is record of gay people all throughout time.  Did you know that gay people were in the concentration camps in WWII?  Yes, where do you think the pink triangle came from?  While the jews wore a star of David to show that they are jewish, the gay people were forced to wear a pink triangle to show they were homosexual.  And did you know that during this time the jews treated the gays the same exact way the germans did?  Oh yes my friend, gay people have been persecuted as long as there has been persecution.

In the 1970’s gay people reclaimed the triangle, turned it upside down and used it as a symbol.  So this I tell the AFA.  We’re here, we’re queer, get used to it cause we’re not going away.  Gay people have been around since the dawn of time and we’re going to be here until the end of time so get over it.

No on Prop 8

On By Michel McDonaldIn Anti-Gay, Gay Rights, PoliticalLeave a comment

I need to ask for your help. There is an unfair ballot proposition that, if passed, will take away my fundamental rights. This is really important to me. Will you help me defeat Prop. 8?

Prop. 8 would eliminate the right to marry for same-sex couples. I trust you agree that eliminating fundamental rights – from anyone – is just wrong.

I hope you are already planning to vote NO. If you are, there are three things you can do below.

But just in case you’re unsure, I want you to know the real deal.

Virtually every major paper in California is against Prop 8. The L.A. Times says it is “a drastic step to strip people of rights.” La Opinión called Prop 8 “an unnecessary initiative”. The San Diego Union Tribune wrote that Prop 8 “offends many Californians’ sense of fairness.”

If that doesn’t convince you, I hope you’ll email me so we can talk about this.

If you plan to vote NO, there are a few easy things to help ensure it is defeated.

  1. Email everyone you know and care about and get them to help us defeat Prop 8.  Send them a message at  http://noonprop8.com/messages?r=friend.  You can quickly and easily send messages.
  2. Make a donation. The other side has raised over $10 million more than us.  They are using their war chest to spread lies and misinformation. Your donation will help us reach undecided voters who need to hear that Prop. 8 is wrong and unfair. http://noonprop8.com/donate?r=friend.
  3. Volunteer your time. Sign up to call undecided voters or help out in field offices across the state. http://noonprop8.com/volunteer?r=friend.

Thank you for doing all you can to defeat Prop. 8.

Here are some videos that I personally have not seen on TV and I really don’t know why.