Gayest Cartoon Characters

 

AND THE GAYEST OF ALL...

  ACE AND GARY.

...EVEN THEIR CAR WAS GAY!

       With the exception of Ace and Gary, whose superpowers seemed to be the ability to have sex in flight and drove around in what looks very much like a penis with wheels, the other characters on this list never really DID anything homosexual.  So, what makes them so gay?
        This is an example of how society can shape titles and labels.  These characters are considered gay because they 'look' gay or 'act' gay.  Well, how does a homosexual look?  How does a homosexual act?  To be 'gay' today, you don't even have to have be sexually active with someone of the same-sex.
      Gender identity is a hot topic in today's society.  If you're a girl and you've got a crew cut and wear baggy jeans- you're gay.  If you're a boy in a deep v-neck and your voice isn't as deep as it 'should' be  - you're gay.  Boys who dance ballet and girls who play softball are all a bunch of gays.  Right?  Wrong.  These stereotypes are affecting the content of everything we absorb and the labeling of everyone we meet:  And they are wrong.
      These characters represent what social and cultural ideas mean for the labeling of gays.  These labels lead to stereotyping, and stereotyping breeds discrimination.  Even Piglet is on this list, and he's just a kid.  Piglet being considered gay just shows how youth can be taunted for their sexuality before they are even old enough to understand it.  In Minnesota, Seth Walsh hanged himself in his backyard after being bullied for being looking, or acting, or seeming gay.  He was 13. 
     In short, the stereotypes and labels need to stop.  Seemingly-straight gays walk among us every day.  Maybe you share your dorm room with one.  Maybe you're dating one and you won't find out he/she is gay until 5 years into your marriage.

There are lesbians who don't wear flannel, and not all gay men have lisps. 

2011 National Day of Silence

        The 15th annual National Day of Silence will be held on April 15, 2011.  This day brings attention to anti-LGBT name calling and harassment in schools across the nation.  The protests the actual silencing of LGBT students due to the abuse, harassment and bias that occurs in schools.  The effort is youth-run and hundreds of thousands participate each year, making it the largest single student-led action towards creating safer schools.
         The idea is to create solidarity within the schools.  The ever-silenced, fearful LGBT students are, on this day, accompanied in this silence by their peers. 

To participate, all you need is to not speak for one day.  

        

Homosexuality - Nature vs Nurture

     Recent studies show gay parents are more likely to have gay kids.  Whether this is good or bad depends on your outlook on gays in general, I suppose.  However, it definitely supports my idea that being gay is not always something you are born with.  I feel that if you enroll your son in ballet and figure skating, and your daughter in softball and lacrosse, you could be fostering a homosexual.  Not to say that all softball players are lesbians and all male ballerinas are gay, but let's face it - these are stereotypes that ring true often.
      However, when reading through the article, there was certainly one thing that upset me: "The decision to permit homosexuals to adopt is best made by the judiciary on a case by case basis."   Ah, there's the kicker.  Nothing like a little governmental prejudice to spice up a story.  I would love to hear of one rational reason gays would ever be unable to adopt that isn't based on the sole fact that they are gay.  

       Your straight sons will continue to be called "faggot" in school for as long as the government allows this prejudice.  If the government bullies the gays, how does anyone expect young children not to do the same in their schools?  Watch TV.  Bullying is becoming a major issue.  Kids are committing suicide everywhere and often.  Many of them are doing so because they are being called gay, rather than actually being gay.  
       Young children, those too young to even know their orientation are hanging themselves.  I  guess a brutal, self-inflicted death is a better alternative to being called gay all of the time.  Why?  Because being called gay is one of the worst things you can say to someone.  Why is that?  I'm not too sure.  I truly wish it wasn't the case.
     Another study on the topic also says that a household without a dad could be beneficial for a child, as your son may be more empathetic and nurturing, rather than caught up in becoming the family's next alpha male. Gay parents tend to raise children in a more open, accepting environment, and rightfully so, because gays tend to be more open and accepting.  I've never heard of a gay walking by someone who "looks" straight and yelling "EW! WHAT A HETERO," in their face.  It just doesn't seem to happen that way.

Photo Assignment

So, these are pretty awful.  The camera being used had no flash, and was being used at night.  Most of my editing was done to increase the lighting because of the lack-there-of in the originals.  The 'before' pictures are first, and, naturally, the 'after' pictures come after.

BULLYCIDE

        Tyler Clementi, a freshman at Rutgers, took his life after his college roommate found it hilarious to stream a sex tape of Tyler over the internet.  Dharun, Tyler's roommate, did this more than once.  Why?  Because Tyler was having sex with a man.  The only reason Dharun harrassed Tyler was because he was gay.  Tyler, in response to having his gay sexcapades and personal life outed via global internet streaming, jumped off the George Washington Bridge.  On September 22 at 8:42pm, Tyler's facebook status read, "jumping off the gw bridge sorry."  I guess Dharun isn't the only one using social media to get their message across.  

       At age 13, Seth Walsh hanged himself from a tree after being harassed for years for being gay.

       At age 19, Raymond Chase hanged himself in his dorm room for the same reason.

       At age 15, Billy Lucas did the same.

       At age 13, Asher Brown also killed himself.
       All of these deaths occured within two weeks of each other.
       Five young, aspiring teens took their own lives.  And Why?
       They were bullied to death.
   How many young lives need to be taken before serious action is taken?  Is five enough?  Or do more young children need to commit themselves to violent suicide before things begin to change? 
     According to news articles reporting on the deaths, in many cases, the parents of the deceased children went to the school in regards to the excessive bullying.  
                                       They sought help.  They received none.
                                                      NOW WHAT? 

LGBT Rights by Country or Territory

         One thing the world doesn't agree on, among pretty much everything else, is homosexuality.  Different states hold different values and laws and express different general feelings than others.  For example, same-sex marriage is legal in California but not in New York.  Naturally, these feelings and laws also differ from country to country as well.  This Wiki article can shed some light on many gay rights from many places, from the acceptance of same-sex marriage to the allowance of gays to serve openly in the military in places from Belize to Canada.

      From what I can see, Canada is probably the best place to be gay.  On the chart in the Wiki article, Canada has allowed all the LGBT rights given as example.  However, in places like Trinidad and Tobego, it is illegal to even engage in homosexual acts and violators receive a 25 year prison sentence.  In Barbados, those who commit homosexual acts receive a penalty of life in prison.  Even in Puerto Rico, gays have just recently (1996) been given the right to engage in homosexual acts, and hold no other rights in this commonwealth of the United States.
        In places like Guyana, it is illegal for males to be gay but not for women.  Males who commit to homosexual acts receive life in prison.  This double-standard is rediculous, and Guyana is not the only country who has this law.  The chart can really open one's eyes to the levels of discrimination in certain places and the values many, many countries hold.  I've also included this map posted here to show LGBT rights varying by U.S. states.  As you can see, the gays have got a long way to go.
                                            Gay Rights are Civil Rights
                           Gay Rights are Human Rights