Here we go again. What is worse slamming your hand in a car door or falling off the roof?
Here is the fact, being gay is becoming more accepted because 40 years ago gays decided to do something. They stood up and said "I am here I am queer get over it." They stood up and proved that they could do the job as well as the next person. They marched, they made noise, they proved that they could be good parents. They are still not all the way there yet. Proposition 8 proved that, but they have made strides. Why? because they came OUT and made people notice them. They have fought the stereotypes of ultra effeminate, perverted, promiscuous people. Or the ultra macho acts like a man male.
As anyone who has read my posts knows I am not a fan off the over the top "drag queen" image, but it was drag queens who started the fire. Gay men who dressed like women were the main focus of Stonewall. We had the ability to make something of it, just like the gays and lesbians did, but we chose to hide. Like little frightened mice behind them while they fought the fight.
We still hide behind them, the ugly step child the "T" in the GLBT. The afterthought, often dropped when legislation is initiated to help the bill pass. We hide in our closets afraid we will be called....wait for it...
gay!. All the gay CD's here raise your hand...one, two, three...maybe 10% of the CD crowd at best? Yet we hide behind them. We don't work to help their image. In fact one of the things they have fought to shake is the image of a poorly made up man tempting either children or "straight" men. Hollywood still portrays us in as stereotypical manner as clowns or psychotics (name three films recently where we weren't...Crying Game, Soldiers Girl and I'll add La Vie En Rose ...watch it if you haven't yet) Now list three films where we were killers or clowns and I bet at least one is your favorite CD movie (To Wong Foo, Silence of the Lambs, Glen or Glenda). The gay friend or neighbor is more common in movies now but they still edge it with the light in the loafers tinge.
Is it harder to be gay? In most cases now they are accepted but they still can't marry. They still can't serve openly in the military, they aren't there yet but neither are most minorities
So many here on CD.com complain that they are not accepted by their spouses or families or neighbors but they add that they can't or won't leave the house. You cannot gain acceptance from behind the curtain.
So yes, tell your wife it is harder for us. It is harder for us because we make it harder for us. We let others fight and hope we gain the dregs of acceptance form their battles. It is so easy for most here to hide that tool box, tackle box storage unit from the world. We make it harder for us. Maybe we can make it easier....in 40 years. The gays have started it for us...but now they are thinking of leaving us behind. Maybe if we had been OUT for them, they would be out for us.