Dallas May Make History, Not that there's anything wrong with that

Jesus?

 

All of this boils down to pgab misunderstanding "analogous" to mean "equal".

 

i'm not suggesting it's old news.

 

All you are doing is disagreeing with the wife of MLK, most likely MLK, and the Chairman of the NAACP.

 

I think they are the same, but different.

 

So Civil Rights has jumped the shark? Fonzi is gay? I dont get it.

 

the thread has jumped the shark.

and fonzie is still cool. sorta.

 

but fonzie never faced that sort of discrimination. and he never dished it out either.

 

For a long time, homosexuality was considered a mental disorder. Sodomy is still illegal in some states. There were gays who underwent shock therapy, chemical treatments and other forms of quack science to cure their illness, despite their final mental state.

In the UK, they drove the inventor of one of the first computers to suicide by forcing him to take drugs that dulled his eccentricities. Despite the great reforms, discrimination worldwide is still recent.

I'm wondering why it takes an equal pound of flesh for you to acknowledge the discrimination and their movements happening among other minorities?

 

Damn, I hate that this thread exploded so quickly.

 

He most certainly did discriminate against squares.

 

That certainly is a true statement, but that's not the comparison being made here. No one's questioning the IMPACT and the MAGNITUDE of the civil rights movement. In fact, the term is interesting in and of itself. We refer to the movements in the 60s as the "civil rights movement." That's a rather universal term since the fight for women's suffrage or the fight for gay rights are part of a larger battle for broader extensions of civil rights.

What people do compare is the underlying logic behind them. In the end, they are all "civil rights" issues and they all boil down to fundamental demands for universal rights. The parallel is the fight for equal recognition under law.

What I really find disturbing is the constant attempt by many to somehow distance themselves from the gay rights movement and to downplay its significance. Look, there aren't as many overt laws that discriminate against gays. This isn't the same fight. There is more of an ideological battle to change the hearts and minds of Americans on this issue. The demeaning and humiliating nature of the closet created by contemporary attitudes of homosexuality is an entirely new dimension of oppression because unlike being a woman or a person of color, people can hide their sexuality and do so under the pressures of society.

There are differences but this is really a problem for me that minorities who had to fight and claw their way to get protection under the law, seemingly throw out a knee-jerk reaction and reject it. There are similarities and part of the battle will be developing coalitions to challenge societal notions.

And lastly, and one thing that gets missed is the intersection of forms of oppression. What about the experiences of gay African Americans or gay African American women. There are African Americans who are affected by discrimination against gays but many just pretend that these intersections don't exist. The same goes for the intersections of gender and race. Multiple movements that share common interests and common connections just pretend to be separate and refuse to acknowledge each other. These are all common struggles to gain entry into the domain of full extension of civil rights.

 

Nice post. But it won't make any impact.

Cynicism justified again. I'm off to go drink. Don't wait up.

 

Where are you going, somewhere in CL?

 

Hispan...









No, I can't do it.

 

You know, the very fact that there is a "coming out of the closet" for gays speaks to the hardship they face being something that is rejected by most people, perhaps even themselves growing up. I can't imagine it's a comforting feeling to realize that you are something you shun and that there are many people who will hate you for it.

The prospects of never having a marriage, or being seen as a immoral person simply because you are wired differently.

Gays may find it harder to get jobs, progress in careers, see their significant other in the hospital and certainly not manage their estate. They are in some instances persecuted.

They are so distateful that other minority groups don't even want to be associated with them. You'd think blacks would embrace gays and empathize, but no, instead they are the number one group that speaks out against them. It's rather ironic in a sad way.

Tolerance of other's differences, in fact embracing them, shouldn't stop at the color of one's skin.

 

I thought you were pro-war?

 

You mean the, "We're gay and proud of it" parties at the City?