Sunday, July 6, 2008

Don't 'Protect' Me; Give Me Your Respect

By Abigail Garner
NEWSWEEK

Growing Up With A Gay Father Wasn't Easy--But Only Because Our Society Doesn't Accept Families Like Mine


I could have made up an answer, just to avoid a potentially tense situation. But I answered honestly, "I'm an advocate for gay and lesbian families." He looked confused so I gave him a little more information. "I talk and write about the experiences of children growing up with gay and lesbian parents."

I travel frequently for my job, so I've been in this situation before. In the best cases, answering this question opens the door to a discussion, regardless of whether the person supports the idea of gay parents raising children.

But occasionally, the passenger next to me responds with silence. That's what happened this time. He looked at me, blinked and then sat back in his seat, staring straight ahead. Finally he grabbed the magazine in the seat pocket in front of him and opened it. His body language, roughly translated, meant, "I did not buy a perfectly good seat on this airplane so that I could sit next to some lesbian."

full article

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