The San Francisco Pride Parade is this weekend. Part of me really wants to go. The other part freaks over the idea of the huge crowds. I’m not sure which part is going to win this year. My heart will be there even my body isn’t.
I was paying a visit to YouTube when I discovered a wonderful video. It’s almost 18 minutes long, but it’s worth every second. If you can spare the time, please watch the video and then read the rest of the post.
Ah, you’re back? Good
You see, our best friend is gay. It’s just a part of who he is.
We didn’t decide that we liked him because he’s gay. We didn’t decide that we liked him in spite of being gay. In fact, the word “gay” never played a part in whether or not we wanted to be friends with him. We decide who our friends are based on character. He’s smart and delightfully funny. He’s loyal to a fault. He has been our friend through thick and thin. I can only hope that we have been just as loyal. That said, the fact that he’s gay matters. It matters because it’s a part of who his is. He can’t change who he is and we would never want him to do so.
I can state with a fair amount of certainty that he doesn’t want to have special rights. He doesn’t want to have more rights than anyone else. He wants to have the same rights that Lastech and I have. He wants to know that he can’t be fired or lose his home because he’s gay. He’s fairly lucky being in California as he’s got a few more protections. Elsewhere, he wouldn’t fair so well. California has been fairly good when it comes to civil rights. However, the people of this State voted to take away his right to marry after it was granted. Think about that.
If they can take away his rights, they can take away yours too.
For the most part, we keep our blog free of politics. When it comes to civil rights, we are NOT on the fence. We cannot and will not be silent. Our GLBT brothers and sisters are no different than the rest of us. They dream the same dreams and should have the right to follow those dreams.
Great post. Pennsylvania, sadly, is probably the worst state in the northeast on these matters. We need change here, now! Unfortunately, our governor is not exactly focused on that. He’s too busy trying to make it as hard as possible for us to even vote…
Thank you. I was going at YouTube looking at my page and this one popped up as recent. I really liked the way Gunderson presented it. 🙂
So true…. and also sooo darn scary to think about just how vulnerable the basic human rights can be when ignorance and bigotry can operate openly like they do. 🙁
Here’s to a time when such stupidity is a thing of the past….
Amen. You are so correct when you call it stupidity. Even here, in San Francisco, the bigotry rears its ugly head on occasion. Hopefully Pride week will be uneventful on that score.