Gay Rights

The never-ending, many-sided debate on Gay Rights has taken on many twists and turns for the past several decades. As a Gay male, I have had to defend the fact that I am gay to countless people, some of which were more willing to listen and learn that others. With the many "gay friendly" and gay pride events, which are sponsored by corporations all over the world looking to improve their presence in the Gay community, people seem to have gotten the impression that the rights and privileges that gay people strive for are "special" This article looks at being gay from a humanistic point of view.

When did it become 'special' to want to be a part of a world where we are all treated equally? Being gay is not so much about being accepted as it is being treated as though our being gay is a non-issue. Much like African-Americans and other peoples of different nationalities in our society, we want to be looked upon for things besides our sexual orientation.

When did it become "special" to have a right to feel safe and protected by our civic and national leaders? Much like our heterosexual counterparts, we voted many of our civic and national leaders into office, and pay taxes to keep them in the position to be able to do their jobs. Yet, gay people are still the victims of hatred, bigotry, and violent crimes every day. Yes, I know that we all stand a chance to be victims of crime, hatred, and bigotry in our lifetime. However, when a gay person is the victim of hatred, bigotry, or a crime, it is often simply dismissed as something we must deal with for being "that way".

When did being in love with someone become something "special?" Love in itself is, indeed, special, and when you are lucky enough to find it, you should do everything and anything you can to hold on to it. Some people love men, some people love women. What gay men and lesbian women want is not special. We simply want the right to love the way we were born to love, and we're entitled to all of the benefits-as well as the headaches and heartaches-that come along with being in love.