It has been my experience to witness hideous stereotypes surrounding gay, white males. These stereotypes are certainly not confined to one race, but for the purposes of this assignment I will refer to Caucasians. The following YouTube video (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ls6-ZYSZoDM) shockingly depicts the harassment experienced by those who choose to live an openly gay lifestyle (CAUTION: There is one instance of obscene language used in this video).
The gay, white males "single story" is generally represented by the media and general public as men who exhibit feminine traits and characteristics. According to the media and general stereotype, this group cares deeply about their appearance, meaning that they are usually wearing bright colors, tight fits, flamboyant styles, etc. Impersonations of this group tends to include lisp-like speech and excessive touching. The messages being sent out concerning this group are fairly consistent, with just a few fluctuations (the artifacts above are evidence of that). All in all, these messages matter to this culture because it seems to be hurting them mentally, emotionally and physically (see the video link above and research link below).
This single story is extremely limiting of the contributions and rights of gay men. Some of the most brilliant minds in history have been sexually orientated to their same gender, yet as a society we continue to hinder their development. Now, I am not a proponent of same-sex marriage and many of the other implications that go along with it, but I am a firm believer that everyone deserves to be treated the way we wish to be treated (the Golden Rule). Because of messages like those shown above, gay men are frequently harassed and it has been proven to hinder their professional and social development (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1448421/).
Because of the stereotypes and messages put out concerning gay, white males, they typically have a more difficult time advancing professionally and socially. This is due to individuals (which think negatively about same-sex orientation) pushing back or against gay advancement, despite the majority opinion that same-sex orientation has little to nothing to do with the gay individuals ability to perform their job (Anderson Cooper and Matt Bomer are prime examples of extremely talented, gay individuals). As a society, we need to do a better job of not stereotyping gay males and treating them as we would any other normal individual.
Just like Oscar in "The Office" and Cam and Mitch in "Modern Family", I feel like the media is now embracing gays. Actually, I feel like the role of the gay best friend has existed for years and now recently the media is highlighting gay couples. Just an interesting thought.
ReplyDeleteP.s. My roommate is in love with Anderson Cooper, openly, publicly in love with him.
Also, if you get the chance, read this article:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.joshweed.com/2012/06/club-unicorn-in-which-i-come-out-of.html
It's from the blog of a gay, active Mormon with a wife and kids. She married him knowing that he is gay. It's fascinating.
I feel like the media (specifically tv) embraces gay men. It's more of the small town, internal views that struggle to not discriminate. Even though someone may not agree with one's life style, doesn't mean that shouldn't be treated kindly. Loved the post.
ReplyDeleteThis is interesting. I liked how you focused on specifically white male gays as apposed to gays in general.
ReplyDeleteThis is obviously such a timely post. So often we forget to be supportive and loving to people around us, especially when they're different and different in ways we don't fully understand. Great reminder for us to be more open-minded and kinder!
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