Because He’s Gay

Aug 12th, 2011 01:06 PM By Megan

I recently moved to a new school because I moved, and on my first day there I saw someone commit an act of hate. I walked into my first class, and there was a very cute boy named David that sat close to the teacher. I recently came from a school with uniforms, but this school did not, and he was wearing very bright colors. I loved his outfit, and he was the first person to tell me hello, and I told him hey, and that I really like his outfit. He asked me what my name was and I told him, and he told me his. A boy sitting almost across the room got up and told me not to talk to him “because he’s gay, which is stupid.”

I am bisexual, and this hurt my feelings so much. I went into a very angry state and went off on that boy. This is what I said: “What? I shouldn’t talk to a human being because he’s attracted to boys and not girls? You were born attracted to girls, and he was born attracted to boys. What does that matter to you? He’s not telling me not to talk to straight people because they’re straight, so what gives you the right to tell me not to talk to him because he’s gay? What is wrong with you?” And he looked at me and said nothing.

The teacher stopped me after class and apologized for the boy’s actions and I told her that if there’s anyone you should be apologizing to, it’s David. I just told the other guy something that nobody has probably ever told him. She thanked me for being so outrageous to him and sat me across the room from him – and next to David. This is for you, David. I give a damn.

Giving A Damn So Others Don’t Have To

Aug 12th, 2011 12:36 PM By Joseph

I’m a 16 year old sophomore and I can’t begin to say that I have the greatest group of friends in the ENTIRE world. I’m been aware of my homosexuality since sixth grade as confused as I may have been. Ever since I confided to the first person that I called my friend I’ve been able to become more and more secure with myself. Slowly but surely I began to open up to more and more people until I hit freshman year of high school. At this point the majority of people I bothered to call my friends (there were and currently are too many to count) knew of my sexual orientation. As a New Year’s resolution I essentially said “f**k it” and decided to immerse myself in what I knew I was, a homosexual young man. High school was never the same but I’ve always had friends to back me up. I’ve been lucky.

Now, openly gay and content with who I am I’ve seen the harsh reality and immense joy of being open with your sexuality. I’ve personally had to deal with the loss of many friends who didn’t agree with my life choice and I’ve been ridiculed beyond which no one should ever have to put up with. I’ve learned so much about who I am and who I DON’T have to be and I’ve overjoyed to know that no matter what I choose in life my friends, my family and anyone who has ever had the pleasure of knowing me will be right there by my side. My personal accomplishments with LGBT rights are few and far between, so small in fact that they’ve barely made a dent in the issue at hand in everyday life. However, I’ve bettered my life in High School by coming out as a homosexual, I’ve bettered the lives of others who have chosen to confide within me and I’ve bettered the lives of everyone who I’ve ever met by allowing them to say they’ve met a proud gay man who isn’t afraid to take on the world.
more…

Everybody – Love!

Aug 12th, 2011 12:26 PM By Bryan

Let’s get some things straight, kiddies. And no, I’m not talking about my rainbow friends. Damn it, rainbows are beautiful and I like them a tad bit on the curved side. I am heterosexual and I give a damn.

The house I came from was very, very broken. I had a mother who was constantly working multiple jobs and balancing school and pregnancies, so she wasn’t there as much as it would have been liked. Instead, I was left at home with my racist, hate spewing, pig headed, All-Nazi “Father.” (By All-Nazi, I mean he is against EVERYTHING! Gays, Jews, Blacks, ANYONE who isn’t white, male, Christian, straight, and DRUNK.) When I was no older than two, my older sister and I would play dress up. I would put on her shoes and he’d have a fit. He would scream, cuss, hit people. How was I supposed to know the “Correct” clothing to put on? I was an infant!

My mother had the same issue. He said that she was making me “Faggy.” He’d hurt me for having stuffed dolls, baby strollers, or even a half decapitated Barbie Doll. I was raised in this unforgiving, intolerant hell hole of which there seemed no escape. I didn’t know what was wrong with the things I did. I mean, Why not? My sister did it!
more…

You Aren’t Alone

Aug 11th, 2011 10:09 PM By Robyn

Hate come in all shapes and sizes. I’m been discriminated against due to my weight. I was raised by two wonderful parents who taught me to be open minded, and that’s helped shape me to think the way I do. I’ve had many friends who were LGBT, and I could care less about their preference. What matters to me is your heart, your brain if you use them correctly.

I knew someone a long time ago who was so afraid to tell their family they were gay, the pressure got to them and they had committed suicide. It was a great loss, and upsetting because I had talked to the parents later on, and they had know their child was gay and loved them just the same. Don’t ever be afraid to talk to someone. I see people as human beings, not gay or straight of transgendered.

You aren’t worthless, you aren’t just another number in statistics, you are who you are because that’s the way you were meant to be, and you are loved… whether it be family, friend or a total stranger like myself. You’re not alone.

That Day in High School

Aug 11th, 2011 10:06 PM By Stephen

Well, I’m not sure how to start, so I’ll jump right in. I grew up in a very small town in the bible belt of the south. Good ol’ Alabama. I knew I was different from a very young age. I think I was about 9 when I realized I wasn’t like most boys. When I was about 11 or 12 I finally came to terms with the fact that I was gay. I still had to live the life of the country straight guy though. When I was 15 I came out to very supportive family and a few friends.

Going to high school I was harassed every day. Calls down the hall – FAGGOT, SISSY, C**K SUCKER. I would just hold it in and do nothing, say nothing. One day a guy started calling me names again and tried to start a fight with me. Finally, enough was enough and I fought back. He blackened my eye and bruised my cheek. I didn’t know what happened until I was in my car leaving school grounds. My fist was bloody and my face hurt. I got so mad in rage that I blacked out during the fight. I apparently broke his arm, cheek, and 4 ribs. I’m not proud of this at all.

Upon arrival to school the next morning I was pulled into the office and was suspended for a week. Turns out the guy that started the fight didn’t even get into any trouble at all. Gotta love the south.

Why Would You Put Someone Through This…?

Aug 11th, 2011 10:01 PM By carl

Well first off, I am a gay male, and I’ve been through hell and back again. When I was in eighth grade, I began to come out to my parents and the people around me. Everything began to change, from my parents not accepting me to kids in school pulling pranks on me. It all came to a head when I was walking through school with a group of boys behind me, I began to walk down a flight of stairs, hoping that I could get rid of them by going the wrong way. I was wrong.

Instead of leaving, one of them came up behind me and pushed me. I fell, tumbling down sixteen steps, my books flying out of my hands, hitting me in the head, pencils being broken in my chest, snapping in two. I couldn’t believe it. I laid there for two and a half minutes, unable to breath, blood trickling down the side of my head from where my eyebrow split in two. The students received a weeks worth of detention a piece, but other than that, nothing.

The next year I went on to high school, hoping that I could get away from the people who would push me down and tell me I’m not good enough. I was walking home, my backpack at school, just walking, when I heard the familiar voices of the kids that had pushed me down the stairs. I thought, dear god, why would you put someone through this. I picked up my pace, without looking back, hoping that they would leave me alone, but they didn’t.
more…

We Can’t Help It

Aug 11th, 2011 01:48 PM By shane

Well, first off my name is Shane I’m gay and I’m 25 years old. My whole life I’ve been bullied just for being who I am. I can’t help I’m this way, it’s the way God made me and I wouldn’t have it any other way. They say I’m an abomination and I destroy the sanctity of marriage. But what about them. Just look at the divorce rate among straight people and they say I’m destroying it. In fact one of the amendments says that we are all equal under the law so they have no right to say we aren’t because we are. What I’m trying to say is I give a damn. And we all deserve the same rights as everyone else we can’t help who we love.

Small Town Ignorance

Aug 11th, 2011 01:46 PM By Lily

I was raised in a way that allowed me to see people for who they were on the inside, never noticing what was on the outside. I had friends from many different walks of life and many different backgrounds. I moved to a small town when I was thirteen. I had a choir concert, and invited a few friends from back home. One of my friends happened to be transgender, going through a big change – Male to Female. I loved her for who she was, but some of the people in this small town made comments about how it is so wrong for a man to be wearing make-up and a skirt. It hurt me to know that people could be so cruel, so I helped start a “teen melting pot” club in my school. It helped kids in this small town come out and be who they were and not be judged so harshly.

Hate Without Thought

Aug 11th, 2011 01:33 PM By Molly

My name is Molly and I am a 16 year old straight girl who’s fed up with how many people act toward gays, lesbians, bisexuals, and transgenders. There’s nothing that shocks me more than hearing a well loved friend or family member say something distasteful about someone else. A lot of kids at my school speak as if being a gay, lesbian, bisexual, or transgender individual is something not only to be ashamed of, but a choice. Obviously it is a choice but not in the way many people seem to refer to it as.

It isn’t a choice like deciding whether to do your chores or not, because a choice like that can be changed by willpower. I can choose to clean my room or to not clean my room. If I clean my room one day I can still choose not to the next and vice versa. However, no one can successfully will themselves into changing a part of what makes them who they are, and nobody should feel like they have to.

A common argument I make to my straight friends is, “Why are you straight? If I told you tomorrow that it wasn’t acceptable to be attracted to the opposite sex, would you be able to switch that attraction to the same sex as yourself?” Every single one I’ve said that to hasn’t made a rude comment about gays, lesbians, etc. in front of me since because I made them think about what they were saying. The thing is when people around you hate something, sometimes its easy and automatic to concentrate on the hate itself instead of on the reason for the hate.

When you think about what you’re against and why, a lot of prejudices dissolve. In my opinion the biggest and worst hate crimes are when people don’t ask themselves the reason why they hate something.

*True Story*

Aug 11th, 2011 01:29 PM By Te-Ana

Hi, my name is Te-Ana. My best friend Rachel is a lesbian, her and her girlfriend came out of the closet 6 months ago and her life has been a living hell every since. Her parents have turned against her and shut her out of their lives. Her brothers and sisters all send her abusive texts saying that she’s a whore, a useless mutt, and a slut. When she came back to school all of our class mates were staring us down.

Then at lunch break, even after school some times, other students would grab her and throw her around. Treat her as if she was “a pile of s**t.” Enough is enough. It shouldn’t matter if a person is gay, lesbian, bisexual or whatever, at the end of the day they are all human beings and should be treated like one. NOT THROWN ASIDE AND FORGOTTEN ABOUT.

They’ve only found love in one another and it’s about time we all love them and accept them for who they are. So for all you gays, bisexuals, lesbians out there – LOVE YOURSELF AND WHO YOU ARE! FORGET WHAT ANYONE ELSE THINKS AND STAND PROUD! KIA KAHA! BE STRONG!