The shutters on my online shop have closed for good and hopefully the shutters on the encounter with ignorance have closed- though I can still hear an incessant noise!
I walked away with my head held high, knowing that I was correct in my challenge and in expressing my feelings on the matter mentioned in the previous post; unfortunately ignorance has prevailed and the individual still believes they have done nothing wrong!
Sadly, it's all being treated as a bit of a joke, with the person and her misguided followers nitpicking at my blog posts (yes I do have the right to self refer as a 'queen', but heterosexuals do not have the privilege of freely using the word queer); there's also blatant lies; tiresome mentions of solicitors (you have my sympathy) and for someone to disagree with what I have to say, why on earth would they want to follow my blog? (stupidity knows no limits!)
I do have a set of balls (and believe me, with the amount of shit that I have put up with over the years, they're titanium, not brass)- but I wasn't going to name and shame on the last blog post, that would just be pointless and petty (and from what I have read, this individual is making a right display of herself anyway)- I wanted to express my feelings about homophobia and the use of homophobic terms and used my recent encounter to illustrate it.
Just to mention that it was actually the remark (R-E-M-A-R-K) that was homophobic, that's what I had challenged, not once did I ever call this individual homphobic, talk about knee jerk reaction!
At present, I haven't got the energy or the inclination to deal with it; suffice to say that it did sicken me to see the school gang bullying mentality; the ignorant and snide remarks from the individual and from others in her support; their comments were not only against me, but directed to others that were in defense of what I had said- it just reminded me of the reality of how nasty and vindictive people can be- which is partly the reason I couldn't continue to keep my shop open- 'haters gonna hate'!
This will be the last post on this matter, I've paid too much lip service to it already and it's hanging around like a silent fart- time to air the room!
I would like to end on a quote-
'There are two kinds of people in this world, my kind of people and assholes...'
Showing posts with label intolerance. Show all posts
Showing posts with label intolerance. Show all posts
12/15/2010
12/13/2010
Gay but not Happy
Poof, faggot, fag, queer, homo, bender...
the list goes on; but these are a few of the more common insults that I've been insulted with over the years. Then of course there are the physical attacks- a brick thrown at me, resulting in a stay in hospital; and just a couple of years ago, attacked unconscious on a busy road because I dared to stand up and challenge homophobia. I count myself fortunate; I could be one of the unimaginable numbers of people around the world that are tortured, murdered or executed because they dare to love someone of the same sex; so it will come as no revelation that I am absolutely intolerant of homophobia, explicit or implicit.
Imagine my dismay when I recently came across a remark, made on a public forum of a craft selling website (of all places) that was homophobic. An individual referred to QPR (Queens Park Rangers) football team as ‘Queers Playing Rough’- I challenged this remark and said that it was actually homophobic- it was using the word ‘queer’ as a derogatory term, much like the common use of ‘gay’ when describing something in a negative way. (I also have to add that heterosexuals don't have the privilege of being able to use the word 'queer' so freely!)
I was absolutely astounded and angered by the reaction of the individual, they threatened me with legal action for being libellous, because I pointed out publicly that the remark was homophobic- am I missing something here? How dare I say that they were homophobic, how they were best friends with a lesbian(?), and that it was a private ‘joke’.
Having gay friends is not license to use language that is considered homophobic; also making relevance of a friend's sexuality is just another example of singling out an individual based on their sexual preference.
To some people, it may seem amusing or even normal describing something as ‘gay’, or think it’s okay to make jokes about 'poofs' or 'dykes'; not forgetting the offensive gay stereotyping- but these are usually individuals who have never been singled out because of their sexuality, or have ever been insulted by one of the many terms for homosexual*- perhaps then, they would realise that these words aren’t so harmless or amusing.
*Fact- there are no derogatory terms for heterosexual!
The issue had consumed my whole weekend- I think what angered me the most was the arrogance and ignorance of the individual demanding an apology, threatening legal action and failure to see how the remark was homophobic; there were also the lies of me allegedly sending nasty messages- no doubt this was to rally support and show how bitter and twisted all us gays are!
I did contact the Stonewall Organisation who said that it was not against the law to challenge homophobic statements on the internet, much the same way as it isn't illegal (unfortunately) to make them.
I am not being overly sensitive, and I most certainly don't have a ‘huge chip on my shoulder’ because I am gay (such a cliché). I’m just a regular individual who has to live in a society that can be intolerant, hateful and violent towards people like me- and if I see something is homophobic, then I will call it out, as it will be homophobic- not a joke, not amusing, not just a word, phrase or political incorrectness- it will be something that represents that intolerance and hate against me and others like me.
the list goes on; but these are a few of the more common insults that I've been insulted with over the years. Then of course there are the physical attacks- a brick thrown at me, resulting in a stay in hospital; and just a couple of years ago, attacked unconscious on a busy road because I dared to stand up and challenge homophobia. I count myself fortunate; I could be one of the unimaginable numbers of people around the world that are tortured, murdered or executed because they dare to love someone of the same sex; so it will come as no revelation that I am absolutely intolerant of homophobia, explicit or implicit.
Imagine my dismay when I recently came across a remark, made on a public forum of a craft selling website (of all places) that was homophobic. An individual referred to QPR (Queens Park Rangers) football team as ‘Queers Playing Rough’- I challenged this remark and said that it was actually homophobic- it was using the word ‘queer’ as a derogatory term, much like the common use of ‘gay’ when describing something in a negative way. (I also have to add that heterosexuals don't have the privilege of being able to use the word 'queer' so freely!)
I was absolutely astounded and angered by the reaction of the individual, they threatened me with legal action for being libellous, because I pointed out publicly that the remark was homophobic- am I missing something here? How dare I say that they were homophobic, how they were best friends with a lesbian(?), and that it was a private ‘joke’.
Having gay friends is not license to use language that is considered homophobic; also making relevance of a friend's sexuality is just another example of singling out an individual based on their sexual preference.
To some people, it may seem amusing or even normal describing something as ‘gay’, or think it’s okay to make jokes about 'poofs' or 'dykes'; not forgetting the offensive gay stereotyping- but these are usually individuals who have never been singled out because of their sexuality, or have ever been insulted by one of the many terms for homosexual*- perhaps then, they would realise that these words aren’t so harmless or amusing.
*Fact- there are no derogatory terms for heterosexual!
The issue had consumed my whole weekend- I think what angered me the most was the arrogance and ignorance of the individual demanding an apology, threatening legal action and failure to see how the remark was homophobic; there were also the lies of me allegedly sending nasty messages- no doubt this was to rally support and show how bitter and twisted all us gays are!
I did contact the Stonewall Organisation who said that it was not against the law to challenge homophobic statements on the internet, much the same way as it isn't illegal (unfortunately) to make them.
I am not being overly sensitive, and I most certainly don't have a ‘huge chip on my shoulder’ because I am gay (such a cliché). I’m just a regular individual who has to live in a society that can be intolerant, hateful and violent towards people like me- and if I see something is homophobic, then I will call it out, as it will be homophobic- not a joke, not amusing, not just a word, phrase or political incorrectness- it will be something that represents that intolerance and hate against me and others like me.
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