CONTACTStaffCAREER OPPORTUNITIESADVERTISE WITH USPRIVACY POLICYPRIVACY PREFERENCESTERMS OF USELEGAL NOTICE
© 2024 Pride Publishing Inc.
All Rights reserved
All Rights reserved
By continuing to use our site, you agree to our Private Policy and Terms of Use.
Suicides. Gay bashings. Targeting and torturing people just because they are gay. It has been a difficult time for any of us who love our kids, our friends, our families, and our neighbors -- to watch people we love beaten and killed because of who they are. Yet this is every day for some people -- lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people who have lived with fear and violence each time they leave the house, go to work, walk down the street, or kiss their partner goodbye.
Violence against LGBT people has not suddenly increased -- it has been increasing all along. In 2008 we had the most violent year for LGBT people since Matthew Shepard was murdered 10 years earlier. October 2009 was the most violent month of the year and the same month that President Obama signed the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act. During the latter half of 2009 and early 2010, a gay or transgender person was killed every month in Puerto Rico. What has increased alarmingly is the severity of the violence -- anti-LGBT violence becomes more brutal each year.
Why is this happening? At the Anti-Violence Project we know that the more visible we are, the more vulnerable we are to those who would act on their anti-LGBT prejudice. Over the past 10 years we have seen a historic increase in visibility around LGBT civil rights -- we are regularly included in national, state and local debates about politics and policy. For every person who speaks to the necessity to achieve equality and respect for LGBT people, there is another who spews anti-LGBT rhetoric. With bus tours preaching against gay folks or signs that promote nooses as the "solution" to same-sex marriage, these are dangerous times. Tens of millions of dollars are spent by so-called community leaders and antigay groups each year to denigrate and denounce LGBT people, creating a culture of hate that results in attacks and suicides.
Antigay rhetoric promotes the stigma and isolation that drives LGBT youths to take their own lives and encourages violent gay bashings, and we've seen the very real harm this does. Hate speech creates a hostile environment that demeans LGBT people and encourages physical attacks against our communities. Anti-LGBT hate speech is dangerous, it is ignorant, and it is wrong.
The rhetoric is all that more dangerous because it is supported by national anti-LGBT policy. Every national law in this country, save one, either excludes LGBT people or discriminates against us. The only law that protects us, the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Prevention Act, is the one meant to prosecute those who would harm us because of this culture of hate. And in what has become a painful irony, the government's failure to repeal the laws that actively discriminate against us -- "don't ask, don't tell," the Defense of Marriage Act -- and refusal to pass those that would acknowledge our equality, such as the Employment Non-Discrimination Act or a fully inclusive Civil Rights Act, contributes to this culture of hate.
So what is the solution? We have to change the culture of hate. We
have to demand immediate equality because we have been put on notice: It
is, literally, deadly to wait. Our laws must not only protect LGBT
people but also proclaim our equality to everyone and denounce those who
would target us for discrimination and violence. We have to stop the
anti-LGBT rhetoric, from the jokes to the nooses. The government must do
that through policy, but so can we by word and deed.
This is everyone's issue. If you were affected by the stories of gay kids killing themselves, if you were horrified to see gay people targeted and tortured, if you think that people should be able to walk down the street without being jumped and beaten simply for being who they are, then this is your issue. And now, more than ever, we need our straight allies to say, "I will not tolerate this anti-LGBT rhetoric. I will not allow another gay joke to go unchallenged. I know how dangerous it is and I will stop it." The people who are dying, who are harmed, are our children, our friends and neighbors. Stand up. Stand up against homophobia. Stand up against violence. Stand up for those who can't and with those who can.
Want more breaking equality news & trending entertainment stories?
Check out our NEW 24/7 streaming service: the Advocate Channel!
Download the Advocate Channel App for your mobile phone and your favorite streaming device!
From our Sponsors
Most Popular
Here Are Our 2024 Election Predictions. Will They Come True?
November 07 2023 1:46 PM
17 Celebs Who Are Out & Proud of Their Trans & Nonbinary Kids
November 30 2023 10:41 AM
Here Are the 15 Most LGBTQ-Friendly Cities in the U.S.
November 01 2023 5:09 PM
Which State Is the Queerest? These Are the States With the Most LGBTQ+ People
December 11 2023 10:00 AM
These 27 Senate Hearing Room Gay Sex Jokes Are Truly Exquisite
December 17 2023 3:33 PM
10 Cheeky and Homoerotic Photos From Bob Mizer's Nude Films
November 18 2023 10:05 PM
30 Steamy Photos of Folsom Street Fair 2023 Debauchery
October 15 2023 11:06 PM
42 Flaming Hot Photos From 2024's Australian Firefighters Calendar
November 10 2023 6:08 PM
These Are the 5 States With the Smallest Percentage of LGBTQ+ People
December 13 2023 9:15 AM
60 Burly Pics from Bearrison Street Fair 2022
October 08 2023 8:30 PM
Watch Now: Advocate Channel
Trending Stories & News
For more news and videos on advocatechannel.com, click here.
Trending Stories & News
For more news and videos on advocatechannel.com, click here.
Latest Stories
LGBTQ+ women face more challenges than men in running for office: report
March 27 2024 5:33 PM
Houthis sentence 9 men to death on dubious 'sodomy' charges in Yemen
March 27 2024 2:39 PM
Pride
Yahoo FeedBreaking boundaries in gender-free fashion with Stuzo Clothing
March 27 2024 2:15 PM
BREAKING: Nex Benedict's autopsy report released
March 27 2024 1:00 PM
Meta is failing its LGBTQ+ users, says new GLAAD report
March 27 2024 12:24 PM
79% of American workers say anti-LGBTQ+ laws impact where they move: report
March 27 2024 11:41 AM
Plus
Yahoo FeedInjectable HIV treatment, prevention: Everything you need to know
March 26 2024 10:45 PM
Ronna McDaniel, tied up by her Trump lies, drowns in an aquarium of her own making
March 26 2024 9:00 PM
The ultimate guide to cannabis in Provincetown
March 26 2024 6:40 PM
New York Times fails to include trans voices in coverage, say GLAAD, Media Matters
March 26 2024 6:31 PM