After these “relations” I decided that if I should want to continue being happy on that level I would have to come-out and be willing to go on dates in public. This involved me telling those who previously assumed I was straight altering their view of me as I told them that I was interested in women.
This blog came out of one of those divulging sessions to a gay guy who I knew loosely for several years. Last night I told him of my endeavor to write a book on this subject and to discuss the need, at least for part of the book, for people in present day American to become more accepting of others' sexual orientation. He cheered me on, saying "yes, please do!" There is a need for the minority in the world on the most personal of subjects - what we do with our bodies and with whom we spend most of our time - to final be accepted and legitimized fully in society. We agreed that there was a moral imperative calling on me to share my story and my knowledge about sexual orientation with the rest of the world.
I decided I would write about these past relationships and my embarking on a new, my first long term relationship using this blog. The topic would focus largely on my relationship hunt, but would also include entries on identity research and acceptance.
At the moment I have one source with me. The source this evening is called "Our Sexuality" the eleventh edition by Crooks and Baur. One should not confuse sexuality with sexual orientation, as sexual orientation refers "to whom one is attracted," the answer either being one's own sex, the opposite sex, or both sexes. This is what I’m talking about in this blog.
Nicholas Kristof, a New York Times columnist, stated that the first cultural issue the 21st century would "face" was that of gender inequality. With that I believe that rights and acceptance for individuals of different sexual orientations should be included. Support for "gay rights" has increased over the past ten years dramatically (see the book entitled "Is it a choice?"). Additionally, culture has promoted an "okayness" for gay individuals to appear in mass media tv shows ("six feet under," "the l-word," "glee") and music (Katy Perry's "I kissed a girl"). Also, think about Perry vs. Schwarzenegger is making its way to the review of the United State’s Supreme Court.
The large question is "how do we get the average American to become comfortable and accepting of gay individual's?" How we define "comfortable" and "accepting" are two good questions, as progress naturally occurs to some extent towards accomplishing these goals. Before answering this question or attempting to persuade the public that it acceptable and normal for an individual to be gay, we must not only understand the scientific backing for gayness as not being a choice and equate it to ethnicity. We must, more importantly, hear the stories of gays and become familiar with their plight and normalize it in our society.
What is at stake in writing such a blog and expressing my story is freedom, an end to what's known as "internalized homophobia," and a newfound self-expression and happiness among gay indivduals and their families and friends.
