2000s: A Gay Rights Victory?

So, for me personally, I consider these past years to be huge for the Gay acceptance movement. The list of famous people who have come out is a staggering number, to say the least. Oh, you wanna see that list? Well here are the two other blogs that give you pictures and accompanying articles of all the Gay men and Lesbians that have come out in the 2000s (The gay men's article is more of a Gay overview of the past 10 years but still very interesting.)

But what does it all mean? Well I think it means that my optimism levels are through the roof! I don't really have a good memory (at all) but I think that there was this situation in America back in the 80s and 90s where people actually had to worry about getting fired if their boss found out they were gay. AND people were trying to get Gay teachers fired because they might "infect" the children with their "indecent love passion-thingies"!! It's hard to think that this kind of stuff still happens in certain areas (and if you don't think I'm telling you the truth on that one, then you're just plain wrong). I feel lucky every day that I live in such a safe community right now, where I don't have to worry ever about that crap....Well, most of the time...

But the really horrible thing is that we still have sooooooooooooo much to do to get everyone protected. LGBT kids and adults are still being murdered in America because of who they are or what they support. Even people who support the Gay rights movement have been getting murdered as well. And it happens everywhere! Have any of you heard of a boy known as Lawrence "Larry" King? He was a 15 year old teen (not far off from my age) and he was shot to death by another boy that Larry had flirted with. This happened not two counties away from where I am living right now. It's absolutely terrifying sometimes when I think about it enough.

But despite all of that horribleness, I still can keep a positive attitude about the future. The media (and the Government to a certain extent) have mostly accepted Gay people, and that's the thing I hold on to for my future. Sure I can't get married in my state right now, but that doesn't mean it's going to be forever! Movements take time, especially for a group that is as in the gray as you can get. So, for now, I will be patient until it's my turn to start fighting my own rights battles. Until then, I'll just be as pleasant as I can be, in hopes that some random conservative will see me and realize that Gay people are just as normal as the rest of the world.