Pride and Privilege

I'm privileged.

I'm a straight, white man, born and bred in North America. I'm well-educated, well-travelled, well-read. I have no religious affiliations. A have a well-paying job, a house, two cars, a spouse, and healthy children.

I am truly fortunate.

I have never known fear, intimidation, and hate over the colour of my skin, my sexual orientation, my culture, my religious belief, my gender.

As news about the shooter in the Orlando nightclub massacre is gathered and evolves, we are seeing a picture of a troubled individual, Omar Mateen, who may or may not have committed this heinous offence because he was conflicted over his sexual orientation. If this is the case, there are more reasons to be outraged over what happened.

It's bad enough that he may have gone on a murderous rampage over his homophobia. There's enough hate in the world, already, over trivial matters and differences of opinion. But love is love is love. If too people love and care for one another, what does it matter what gender is involved? I would much rather see two people displaying compassion and affection for one another than two people fighting.

Love will always be stronger than hate.

If Mateen was, indeed, coming to terms with his homosexuality, I feel that what he did was far worse. He attacked the very community that would be understanding of his situation. Many in his shoes have worried about coming out, have fretted over how it would affect their family, their friendships, their jobs. I have friends who have grappled with coming out, were unsure whether the declaration would alienate them.

Mateen went into a place where he would have been welcomed, would have been able to feel safe, and in that place he mercilessly slaughtered scores of innocent people.

Was he afraid of how his father would have acted to the discovery that his son was gay? If you've heard about his father's reaction to his son's actions, you already know his thoughts on homosexuality: "God himself will punish those involved in homosexuality."

I'm not going to get into discussing Trump's mindless responses to this tragedy nor to America's stupidity over lax gun laws. I don't think that this attack was a terrorist act—Mateen's pledge to ISIS was a deflective statement, I think.

No, I want to say that as a privileged person, I will never know what it's like to be singled out by racism or homophobia. All I can do is speak out against it.

Actually, I want to do more than simply speak out: I want to take action.

I'm a person who believes in peace, goodwill to others, and accepting people, no matter their background and no matter whether it differs from mine.

I want to show my solidarity with the community that was targeted in this senseless attack. And so, this August 21, I plan to march in the Capital Pride Parade. It's a small gesture, but if enough people make small gestures, the net change can be huge.

Who's with me?

Lovers & Haters

Are you a lover or are you a hater?

I'm not a religious person but I firmly believe in the axiom that is held in all realms of faith: treat a person as you would like to be treated.

I'm not a perfect person by any stretch of the imagination, but I try to be a good person. I try to treat people in a respectful manner, to behave towards them in a way in which I would like them to reciprocate.

I've been following the news coming out of the United States on the same-sex marriage bill, and I've seen photos, of both sides, of people waving signs condemning gay marriage and others bashing the gay-haters.

From what I see, there's a lot of hate going on.

While I can understand the frustration of the supporters of gay rights, I think that they should firmly focus their attention on support for the people who are looking to have equal rights bestowed on them. Gay rights are human rights, and that kind of thing.

I, being a supporter of same-sex marriage, join in the frustration that is directed at those who are opposed. I don't see how allowing same-sex marriage will affect the day-to-day lives of the men and women who are waving their signs of hatred and condemnation. Signs that talk of a "gay agenda."

What agenda? Do these folks live in fear? Fear of what?

I have friends who are gay. Some, I've known since high school; others, I've known throughout my adult life; few, with whom I've been friends for only a short time. These wonderful people are just like any of my straight friends: they love to laugh, they are smart, insightful, caring. They enjoy a good drink (I have few friends who don't drink), a good book, a great movie.

The only thing that differentiates my gay friends from my straight friends is their sexual orientation. And their unexplainable love for Madonna.

I'm a lover: I love my friends. I love them for who they are. I wouldn't change anything about them.

With so much hate in the world—war, cruel regimes, Democrats versus Republicans—I believe that if two people love each other, want to spend the rest of their lives together, and be contributing members to society, who are we to complain that those people are the same gender?

To those who would want to spread condemnation and hatred, look to the Golden Rule: treat people—all people—the way you want to be treated.

Are you a lover or a hater?