Friday, May 30, 2014

In the news

Someone in the grocery store last night was complaining about the news.  "It's all about the gays.  Nothing else is ever mentioned anymore.  Gay, gay, gay."
 
Well first of all, openly gay Clay Aiken did do extremely well in North Carolina's 2nd district, oh and HGTV scrubbed a home show by anti-gay anti-Muslim and anti-abortion activists, and then there was the story about a Beverly Hills Hotel which found that flogging women and stoning gays is bad for business, and just in case you hadn't heard, the Saint Louis Rams selected Michael Sam - the first openly-gay prospect in NFL history, plus bearded drag queen Conchita Wurst won the Eurovision Song Contest, and a judge in Arkansas struck down the state's ban on same-sex marriage.  Yes, there were a lot of gay stories.  It sure was not a bad week for equality!
 
I'm not even going to mention the negative stories, but let me assure you that there were many and the stories included hate crimes and discrimination and even the refusal of a gaming company to give equal access.  Good news though should be celebrated, and anything that furthers equality and fairness is good news.  Too much?  We can never have too much.  I am actually hoping that some of the advances this past week will inspire others to become more involved. 
 
EVERYONE deserves to be considered at the polls and his or her sexual orientation should have nothing to do with how we vote.  Everyone deserves safety and security when visiting a hotel.  Everyone deserves an equal chance of playing professional sports.  Everyone deserves an equal opportunity in a talent contest.  Everyone deserves the right to marry the adult person they are in love with.
 
Some media will cover things more fairly and accurately than others.  If you see bias, don't rely on that media.  Support instead news organizations with a better record for impartiality and fairness.  Hopefully the day will come when breaking a barrier and becoming the first won't be news anymore.  Hopefully there will be a time when equality is the norm.  Hopefully.

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