Think before you speak. Don't say "That's So Gay."
This campaign has been going on for over a year now. You may have seen some of the PSA's on television during the last year. I can't tell if the campaign is working, so I'm doing my part to keep it out there.
Please take a few moments and check out the web link above, It is quite extensive and has many personal stories, PSA's and resources for parents and educators. The twitter counter above is just one of many counters and website banners that are available to share.
After reading one of my newly found favorite blogs "living my life, whatever" (check it out, it's on my blog roll too), I was really impressed with his 'I want to be gay again" blog post on Tuesday.
One thing that really stuck out to me was reading that he did not really understand what it means, when people say "that's so gay!" It is not a very nice thing to say, and unfortunately our teenagers are using this phrase a lot. Hopefully they will some day think before they speak, especially if they see some of the PSA's, which are showing on channels like MTV and VH1. Hopefully sometime in the future, we will never hear this insulting remark.
Have you heard somebody say "that's so gay,' and if so how did you react? What will you say if someone says that to you or someone around you? COMMENTS PLEASE! Thanks in advance. ~ John
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5 comments:
Wow, thanks for the shout and compliment, John.
I put one of the 'that's so gay' buttons on my blog.
Thanks for the lead.
This is such a great campaign. "That's so gay," is an interesting phrase. I'm not sure when it started, why it started, and is it meant to be truly insulting to gay people? Or is the word evolving into yet another meaning?
I had a straight friend say that once and I said, "No, it's so straight." She got this startled look on her face and then said, "Wow. I never thought of how that sounds."
I find it very frustrating. I'm in engineering and I hear it all the time. This is a very weird faculty because there is a 1:7 ratio of women to men (at least here) and I am the only gay guy I know of in the structural section (about 70 people, total faculty is about 250 and there might be two others).
It comes up all the time. The first time I hear someone say it I may turn it around "at least it's not a straight piece of shit". Just to get across how I feel when they say it. Then I tend to just evil stare them. It seems to work.
It's a little harsher version of Michael's response above. I realize that most people don't relate "it's gay" to gay people but it gets a little degrading and I want it to stop.
John, Stan had to deal with this all the time when he was teaching in the classroom and many of my friends are teachers, so they too have to deal with this on a weekly basis.
At both corporations I worked for, GLBT people were protected in some fashion, so I didn't have to tolerate anything like that in the workplace. Everyone knew I would report them if they crossed an equality line of any kind. I was management, so their might have been an insulating factor.
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