Homophobia is so Gay

Am I not analyzing why enough?

Adelina Richards
English 127H
October 22, 2012
Homophobia is so Gay
One day while walking home from school, I overheard two middle school girls talking. As they conversed, one slipped on a patch of ice and fell. “Ouch!” she cried, “This ice is so gay!”. I immediately stopped in my tracks, filled with utter shock. How could ice be gay? It wasn’t alive, it couldn’t form thoughts. In fact, it wasn’t even human. It beguiled me that a girl who couldn’t have been older than twelve had associated an inanimate object that caused her pain with the word gay. Although clearly the use of the word gay has changed drastically over time, what social and cultural shifts could have led to its derogatory use instead of its original meaning, happy?
In today’s society the word gay can take on many different faces. We more generally see a connection between the word gay and homosexual culture, and depending on the context, it has been used as an adjective or a noun. As a noun, it is has stemmed as a source of  pride in one’s sexual orientation,  as well as a means of identification. Many homosexuals refer to themselves as gay, because queer is too insulting, and homosexual reminds many of the connotation that homosexuality is a mental disease.It wasn’t removed from the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) until the 1970s, and was highly protested since the term homosexual was based too much on the sexual orientation rather than the emotion and love that binds a homosexual relationship. Seeing as queer was derogatory, and heterosexual too clinical, it was found to be better to identify oneself using a word that was earlier associated with words such as carefree and happy. In many newspaper articles, reporters will refer to the homosexual community as the gays, and are prompted to do so according to the GLAAD media reference guide.In this guide, it was highly stressed to replace the word homosexual with lesbian or gay.This is surprising considering many homosexuals shy away from using gay as a form of identification because of the social issues related to it. For example, the suicide rates of teens who are bullied for being gay has sky rocketed. Also, many lesbians do not like being associated with the term gay because they see their lifestyle and choices to be different from that of homosexual males. Although they face the same kinds of segregation and hostility, they are still seperate and wish to be named as such. strict separation of gay versus straight, it seems that we label people as gay rather than actions as gay. (So and so from article) argues that the term gay should not be a form of identity, but a way to describe a life style and actions associated with that life style. For instance, in the case of civil rights, it is not socially acceptable to call a group of African Americans “Blacks”, it is preferred for you  to call them black people.
The word gay first appeared in 1325  by G.L. Brooke in order to compliment a woman, its original meaning. It shifted from noble and beautiful to showy and finely dressed  or happy and carefree in the 1400s. This shift could be akin to the relationship between beauty and happiness and being well dressed. The late 1700s brought this definition to describe poetry as the gay science, since it was a beautiful, almost carefree science.Henceforth, the word did not have a connection to any form of sexual immorality  until around the 1800s.

In the 1800s, the term gay was used to describe a person who were involved in carefree sexual actions. Since the term meant carefree and frivolous, it was then used as a description of this style of sexuality, and mainly included prostitutes and womanizers. Many a time would a flirty guy be called gay for the lawls. In fact, the only relation of the term and sexuality was in a heterosexual context until around the 1920s. Here, Gertrude Stein writes”They were …gay, they learned little things that are things in being gay, … they were quite regularly gay.” about two women in a homosexual relationship. Many speculate on whether she is referring to them as lesbian or just being happy in general (as was the trend in the lost generation in Paris). Due to many cases of this ambiguity, for a few more decades it continued to simply mean carefree. This is evident in movie titles of the era such as “The Gay Divorcee”, a 1934 movie about a heterosexual couple.

On the other hand, slowly over time gays began to use the term as a form of identity in an underground way such that the heterosexual community was unaware of its connotation. For example, in West Village, NYC there’s a street that was known as “Gay Street” by many homosexuals. It was a center of homosexual culture in the 1940’s, and the phrase “Are you gay?” was code for asking if someone was homosexual. Eventually, the term in relation to homosexuality was embraced by the heterosexual community as well, since the connotation wasn’t offensive, and was almost praising homosexuality.

The use of gay as a derogatory word meaning lame or stupid originated in the United States, and is to this day most popular in a majority of US high schools. Its first recorded use was in 1978, where an outfit that made a character look stupid was referred to as gay. It is assumed that the term used in this sense is now not related to homosexuality, however it probably evolved from offensive use of the term gay in forms of bullying. So even though it’s usually said casually, it can have malicious effects on the young gay population. David Phillips comments, “Consider a teenage boy or girl, just coming to terms with themselves and hearing the common term describing their sexuality – gay – being used as a synonym for something uncool, “sad” and disappointing”.

Henceforth, there has been a recent effort to eradicate the dubious use of gay. On May 31st of this year, A New York Times article was published about a court ruling concerning the term gay as a defamatory term. The court ruled that falsely calling someone gay could no longer be taken to court as slander because there is no negative association with the word gay, and being called such should not make one feel disgraced. However, throughout time different words have emerged to describe homosexuals in a shameful manner. Some speculate that once gay rights activists have eliminated the derogatory use of the term, another will simply take its place. It is human nature to bully and to hurt, which is why terms like ‘queer’ and ‘faggot’ exist. Before kids were being made fun of for being gay, they were made fun of for their sex, or skin color. Humans hate what is different, and it scares them, causing them to lash out at innocents. For example, the German word equivalent to gay, schwul, is also used by teens to describe something boring and lame. This nonchalant usage of a term that can be hurtful is hurting out youth in ways unimaginable.

This usage is changing the way young people think and react to the world. Although the little girl was probably not thinking of homosexuals  when she was angry at the ice, imagine what it would be like to be a gay kid passing by and hearing those words. Being compared to an inanimate object that just caused pain could add an extra stress to developing his sexuality, and could cause him to become like Jeffery Dahmer. It’s hard to make everything we say politically correct, and because of this, many casually use a word associated with identity and pride to describe something bad. Overtime, the word gay has evolved from a compliment to women to a word describing all things homosexual through different stages of society’s views on homosexuality. It is shocking to recognize that there was a time where politicians invisioned gays as people with horns, and that homosexual love was once known as the love that could not speak its name. Now it is spoken, loud and proud.

Yo tengo un gato en mis pantalones.

If you ask Mariam’s friend Eli what the first words I said to him were, he’d reply:
“I’m Adelina, I’m part Puerto Rican and part Italian and that’s why I’m so beautiful”.
Yeah I know, I should’ve learned my lesson from the first guy (see Blog One: My Life is Awkward). However, you should know by now that I never, NEVER learn my lesson.

But that’s one of the many stereotypes pressed on me for being a Hispanic, idiocy. While applying for a Hispanic Scholarship at University of Miami, and they replied that my grades were too high to be considered a Hispanic. Like… WHAT. Studying and actually wanting to do something with my life doesn’t change the color of my skin. You wouldn’t think that people can be that ignorant, but I have heard my fair share of jokes about my skin color.
I once had a boyfriend ask me if when I showered, brown came off.

Yes, I wish I was joking, but no, I’m not xD The same guy later said that he liked it better when I was tan, because during the winter I look like… I’m half white or something. (For those of you who don’t know I’m half Hispanic half Caucasian). But in his defense, today my friend said that I looked like a white person dipped in chocolate.

But at least I can deal with skin color jokes, I mean looking back on them they’re pretty funny(laugh at my jokes! D: It’ll make me feel popular 😀 ). What I cannot, CANNOT tolerate is the stereotype that all Latinas are sluts. Ok sure, my aunt got pregnant at age 13 and then proceeded to have five more kids. However, my mom waited to have kids until she was in her late thirties and I seem to have SOME HOW not gotten pregnant for eighteen whole years of my life, yay!


If you type in latina into google images, you will find girls in various states of undress. And don’t even bother trying to type in boricua, Puerto Rican, or Hispanic into tumblr. What will you find? PORN. SO MUCH PORN. But anyway the point is that Latins are basically associated with sex. That is not cool, NOT AT ALL. I’ve had a lot of guys make advances on me thinking I’ll sleep with them like it’s nothing. My one friend’s first impression of me was that she’d never had a friend who wasn’t white so she thought I’d be a slut.

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Yeah I know you’re thinking that I’m reading too much into the Hispanic thing, but when some guy sees you and turns to his friend and says “Ella esta caliente!” in the most gringo way possible, you can’t help but think people are racially profiling you. (BTW: saying I’m “caliente” means I’m literally overheated, no that I’m attractive…). Whether it be racially profiling Hispanics, Indians, or African Americans, America is still a very racist country. I don’t believe we will ever be able to break free from our stereotypes, because humans as a whole are hateful and elitist. If we don’t hate each other for different skin colors, it’s for different religions, or political thought processes. I won’t ask you to change your internal nature, but I will ask you to change the way you act towards others. Try and see beyond what you initially think about a person. Just because someone wears Sperry’s doesn’t mean they’re nice, and just because someone is ginger doesn’t mean they don’t have a soul. People are just people, no matter what they look like. Who knows? You might learn something new by letting someone different in.You never know if you’re going to have a moment like this:

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We turn skeletons into goddesses and look to them as if they might teach us how not to need.

I scrolling down my face book newsfeed, and came across a particular post that actually caught me attention. It read as follows:

“All this bullshit on the news talking about how they need restrictions on calorie intake for the school lunches and how celebrities are gaining too much weight is really getting on my nerves. This is why girls and guys have body image problems and have eating disorders. Everyone is beautiful no matter how they look. :l”

Now look down at yourself. Squeeze any fat you can find there. How much is too much? A pinch? A handful? There is no direct definition of “fat” and “skinny” but as a society, we force our own definitions onto others. There are many different body types, and sometimes the media forgets this. Take for instance, the difference between the Victoria Secret “Love My Body” campaign and Dove’s “True Beauty” campaign.

Both campaigns are missing major body types, and it is impossible to say which body type is more “beautiful”. When it comes to a point where girls look at the Victoria Secret models and start to throw up their meals or simply refuse to eat, you know there is something seriously wrong with the society’s standards. However, we also find girls who are just as skinny, but long to look like the Dove models, but can’t no mater how much they eat. Weight is largely determined by genetics, and there are certain diseases such as cancer or thyroid hormone imbalances that can cause a person to have a predetermined weight.
It is important to be healthy, but weight and body image is not equivalent to health. So stop judging yourself, don’t feel the need to confirm to the image that society demands you be. Be yourself, be healthy, and once in a while enjoy that creamery ice cream without feeling quite so bad about yourself. I guarantee you, you’re beautiful inside and out!

all images found on tumblr

It’s Over!

 

I can’t even begin to describe how amazing our class’s speeches were. I was utterly appalled by the amount of people who seemed perfectly comfortable speaking in front of a crowd. Everyone has excellent eye contact and I didn’t have problems hearing anyone. Some of the topics were particularly appealing to me, and many got me fired up to make a change in my community. The speeches really made me see what it truly meant to be citizen, in my global and local community. On a daily basis, I’m not usually thinking about all of the small things that I can do to fulfill civil duties. However, our class did an excellent job of taking everyday things, like buying shoes or recycling, and explaining how they can change the world.
These excellent points were usually delivered very well, and I love when people used power points to aid their presentation. Power points made it easier to focus on the topic at hand and see how to related to rhetoric and civic life. I think what we as a class (including myself) need to work on is visual aid in presentations. We also need to work on saying “ummmm…” I caught myself doing it, and I noticed a few others did it as well. Obviously, we’re all nervous up there, so it’s understandable. I’m sure as the year goes on and we all become a little more comfortable with each other it will get easier over time. I was talking to a friend about how I’ve never been so nervous delivering a speech, and she thought that it was because in High School you know everyone you’re presenting the speech to really well. (or at least you recognize them, I would hope so after going to the same school as them for 12 years).
So, all and all our class did great, and I’m seriously looking forward to the next speeches!

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Would you do the right thing?

Do The Right Thing was an inspiring movie about racial segregation. It explores topics of love, loss, and the barriers people make for themselves. Although at first glance the characters seem unintelligent and “ghetto”, there is more to them then what meets the eyes.

Take for instance, Sal. Making pizzas is all he knows, and often chooses to use violence instead of words. However, when his son Pino complains to him about having a Pizzeria in a black neighborhood, Sal uses rhetoric like a master. He contorts that the people in this area have never given him any trouble and explained how proud he was that many of them grew up on his food. Suddenly, his son replies that they should just open a pizzeria in their own neighborhood because his friends make fun of him. Sal states that those people were not really his friends and that there were too many pizzerias in the Italian neighborhood.

Even though Sal makes excellent points, Pino is blinded by his utter hatred of those with a different skin color. Mookie tries to convince Pino that he idolizes black people like Prince. Flustered, Pino replies that those people are not really black, well they’re less black. His judgment is completely clouded by what society tells him to think. Society says that it is alright to like black people like Prince, but the everyday black man is no good.

Pino may have been blinded by society’s views, however it is important to note that the Italians were not the only characters expressing racism in Do the Right Thing. Across the street from Sal’s Famous pizza, there is a Korean food Market. When Radio Raheem goes into this store, he curses out the Koreans and tells them to learn English and treats them as though they are inferior to him. Men on the corner comment that these people are “fresh off the boat” and yet they have a business while the black people don’t. Nevertheless, when the people riot in anger against the white man for Killing Radio Raheem, the Korean store owner screams that they are the same. They are both different, and this unifies them. Amazingly, the mob turns away from the little grocery store and leave the Korean family alone.