Your Life Can Be Transformed Forever

by Dick Mac

There are times when I am moved to tears. OK, maybe not to sobbing tears, but to a deeply felt sadness that chokes me up and makes me weep. Quietly.

Sometimes it's an advertisement for destitute children in not-so-faraway places, it can be a movie, even a televisions show.

Lately it's been teen suicide, and in particular, teen suicide by lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgendered, and questioning teenagers. Young people whose sense of themselves as adults with sexual inclinations are confused by the messages they get from the world around them.

In some ways it was easier in the 1970s and earlier when being LGBTQ was simply unacceptable. You knew which side of the line you lived on and you were on the wrong side of the line and that was that.

Many changes have taken place over the past forty years, but things haven't gotten easier for LGBTQ youth; in fact it may have gotten harder.

I assumed that other oppressed minorities would come to the aid of homosexuals the same way that many homosexuals have come to the aid of other oppressed minorities. Instead, some of the most powerful people in other minority groups are the most vociferous anti-gay people in America.

The word 'gay' is now synonymous with negativity to a greater degree than the word nigger ever was. "That's so gay!" is a remark I hear all the time. "He's such a fag!" is another one.

If I said to another person: "he's such a nigger!" I would be ostracized, could lose my job, would certainly lose friends, and would pay some price for the remark. These days, however, it is commonplace to hear children and adults alike use the word 'gay' in a disparaging tone.

This has to stop. It's killing people.

And if you are a young LGBTQ person out there, I hope you take some comfort knowing that I understand. I was there, and I know how painful it is. I know it seems like it will never get any better. It will get better.

Tim Gunn, gay television icon extraordinaire recently released this video clip:



Here is the link to the Trevor Project that helps at-risk LGBTQ youth:

The Trevor Project

If you need their help, call them. If you kill yourself, you can't start over again. If you reach out for help, your life can be transformed forever.

If you have a few dollars to spend, please donate.

Oh! In passing: If you oppose equal rights for homosexuals, if you support Don't Ask Don't Tell, if you oppose gay marriage: you are a scourge on the Earth and you are responsible for the bullying, torture, suicide, and murder of young Americans.