What do you guys think of this It Doesn't Get Better video?
Definitely went into this thinking he was going to be one of those self-agonizing gays who've experienced a little bit more than their fair share of discrimination, and have become debbie-downers about being gay in the adult world. However, he brought up a good few points.
Even so, I think his arguments are more geared towards the exceptions and not the majority. I think he had very well thought-out arguments, and yeah, the "it gets better" campaign has somewhat sugar-coated the world for hopeful gay teens. It's not like that. Welcome to the world, children. Whether you're a minority, a woman, queer, handicapped, or different in any way, you're going to face discrimination. It doesn't stop. What
does change is that you'll have better tools in which to remedy your issues with discrimination in the future. Not only will you obtain freedom to escape your possible hostile surroundings for that of a more comfortable locale, but you gain the strength to endure what people throw at you. Don't get me wrong, it's still going to hurt, but grab a gallon of ice cream and begin the healing process.
His viewpoints on the
gay community are pretty spot on. While I think even his own arguments proves that there is, albeit minimally, a community to speak of... we're far from tight-knit. We police each other and judge, and when we
do actually come together, it's for something
camp... only really giving the heterosexual majority more reason to further ostracize us. The truth is, we're individuals, and while having a common interest in being "different" in regards to our sexuality or gender/sexual identities may bring us "together," saying we are
one is grossly overgeneralizing. However, as he put it, to be considered one of the "cool gay kids" you have to look a certain way, dress a certain way, and do certain things. This does give our community a stereotype in which to follow. Good or bad, we have a face for homosexuality. I'll admit, I fall right into nearly all of those... and continue to conform, or, um, not conform in some cases... which in itself is conforming anyway. -shrugs- I think sometimes we all do things to gain social acceptance, even to a certain degree. If you didn't, stop speaking English. You're conforming to get along in our society. See what I did there?
I think sometimes we just get swept up in our rally to make our lives as queer individuals more accepted that we forget the logic behind it. We immediately turn on those that have a differing opinion to current issues like gay marriage or, in this case, disagree with a campaign aimed at helping gay teens feel better about themselves. Perhaps we should look at what they're really saying before jumping to conclusions. Chances are good they're not disagreeing with the cause, they're disagreeing with the implementation.
/end opinion
