LGBTQ related news and issues

[tfferg]

The Conversation currently has an article Why some straight men have sex with other men by Tony Silva about his book Still Straight: Sexual Fluidity among White Men in Rural America.

He found that these men do not perceive themselves as (closeted) gay, homosexual or bisexual because their primary emotional and romantic interest is in their female partner. They do not dee their sexual encounters with men as cheating or a threat to their marriages, as extramarital sex with women would be The author found internalised homophobia was not a factor and that they tended to be supportive of equality for gay and bisexual men, though fear of discrimination was a factor for some of them in maintaining their identity as straight in public and in their own minds.

The article contains links to earlier studies of straight men who have sex with men in Australia and the UK

[Lyle (Mooska)]

I hate when straight men are having more gay sex than I am.   

[fritzkep]

Welcome to the club!

[CellarDweller115]

[Flyboy]

I just have trouble believing that truly STRAIGHT MEN actually have Sex with Men. Unless they are trapped on an Island forever, or perhaps in Prison for Life, I don't think truly STRAIGHT MEN will have Sex with another Man. These Men they report on probably are bi or even closeted Gay. Perhaps they had a first time orgasm or sexual experience with another Guy in their youth? Or perhaps they believe no one can perform Oral Sex on a Man quite like another Man can? I don't know, this is just my opinion. They say a lot of straight Married Men seek out other Men for Sex. Hmmmm..........this is true, but it doesn't mean they are 100% straight men.......I always wonder where these Straight Men fall on the Kinsey Scale? Certainly not on 100% straight! 

[gattaca]

^^^ Interesting article. I'd also recommend reading current reviews of the book/work.  IDK if I'll read the book right now.   The "argument" he and the males he interviewed are making is containerized to a high degree which are supported by some of the quotes and justifications presented for loosely from what I read: 

it's not cheating on my wife, or my sense of self or my identity in the community,  if I'm just having sex with another male b/c that's not the basis of who I am and present to be."  They imply if they were having sex with a female, then that would be totally different and wrong.   Hmmm.. again that nice box.   

I'll sleep on this one a bit more.   Funny, one of the quotes was from a male in Wyoming.

+ 15 May 21.. ah the quote for you...

"Living in small towns and in more rural settings also shaped how the men perceived themselves. Larry, 37, from Wyoming explained: “I would say straight because that best suits our cultural norms around here.” Most of the men I talked to were happy with their lives and identities, and they did not want to identify as gay or bisexual — not when people asked them, and not to themselves. "        V.

[Flyboy]

Wyoming?!!! 

[Lyle (Mooska)]

Remember the above post I made that had these two married former Navy Officers on the NBC game show THE WALL?

Last night I watched the first episode of a new game show called SMALL FORTUNE. (I mention what it's about on the TV thread.) Each episode has one team of three contestants who all know each other. The team on the first episode called themselves SEMPER FLY.



In the photo, left to right above, are Johnnie, Nick and Baothy. Johnnie and Baothy are brother and sister. We find out early on that Johnnie and Nick served in the Marines together. They show some photos of them in uniform. Nick tells us that he met his roommate, Johnnie, in the Marines and he knew right away that Johnnie was gay. Johnnie said this was around 2011-2012 when Don't Ask Don't Tell was still in effect. So you had to be extremely careful. Nick said one day when they were on maneuvers, Johnnie swung his hand around and slapped him across the face and shouted "I'm gay" and then ran away. Later Johnnie said, "You wanna talk about it." Nick said, "no, I already knew that." [The host joked that Nick should've hauled off and slapped him in the face and shouted, "I know!") They became extremely close friends throughout their enlistment and afterwards.

This kind of openness on game shows never gets old to me; I love it. Here we have a straight guy, comfortable and best friends with a gay guy he met in the Marine Corps.

You can watch it on NBC's website at present:
https://www.nbc.com/small-fortune/episodes

[gattaca]

^^^ WOW nice - maybe the world really is changing.... the younger gens are more accepting and have far fewer issues with someone's sexual preference, orientation, being or whatever we want to label things this decade.  Many feel it is NOYB and they are right.  Still others, look around at all the laws being enacted by US State legislatures run by old white GOP bigots, and well we still have a long way to go in many areas of the country.   They continue hiding their bigotry and hate behind the "religious freedom" BS.  Even A. Scalia knew and refereed to the dangers in this "religious freedoms" dogma.

Overall, it is refreshing to see two beings / people that comfortable with each other.   Most guys I know are "old school" and would not be "that comfortable - ever".  I have to wonder... maybe there's more.  V.

[tfferg]

A recent survey in Australia shows that school students are subjected to homophobic slurs and hate speech every day. It affects them academically as well as emotionally and in many schools, teachers do nothing about it.

In New South Wales, there is a bill before the state parliament put up by a nasty far-right member for a ban on teachers giving any lessons on sexual or gender diversity.

In the Federal parliament, there is somewhere in the wings, something similar under the guise of "religious freedom".

In schools where there is support for diverse students and education about sex and gender diversity, LGBTIQ+ students are happier and do well academically.

[tfferg]

The current Victorian state government has passed a number of acts, including pardons of men convicted for consensual same-sex acts.

I knew that the Premier, Daniel Andrews, apologised in 2016, but I didn't hear or read his speech. I've just seen this extract:

"There was time in our history when we turned thousands of ordinary young men into criminals. And it was profoundly and unimaginably wrong [...] This parliament and this government are to be formally held to account for designing a culture of darkness and shame [...] We are so sorry. Humbly, deeply, sorry."

[brianr]

The current Victorian state government has passed a number of acts, including pardons of men convicted for consensual same-sex acts.

I knew that the Premier, Daniel Andrews, apologised in 2016, but I didn't hear or read his speech. I've just seen this extract:

"There was time in our history when we turned thousands of ordinary young men into criminals. And it was profoundly and unimaginably wrong [...] This parliament and this government are to be formally held to account for designing a culture of darkness and shame [...] We are so sorry. Humbly, deeply, sorry."

The NSW parliament did something similar about the arrests after the first Mardi Gras. It was moved by a gay Liberal member of parliament.

I think it helps that the current deputy Prime Minister of NZ is a partnered gay man. I have not read anything derogatory but guess there are some.
 
I am always amazed that NZ which is so much more of a rural society than Australia has been a world leader in social rights, eg the first in the world to give women the right to vote. I think we also had the first trans-sexual member of parliament and way ahead of Australia in permitting same-sex marriage without the hoo haa of a plebiscite.

[tfferg]

Yes, interesting.

BTW, Victorian premier Daniel Andrews who made the apology and whose government has enacted a range of progressive social policies is a Catholic.

[CellarDweller115]

I don't know how many of you all read comic books as kids, I surely did.

If there were books like this when I was a kid, I may have felt better about myself.


For pride month, DC Comics (home of Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Justice League) has released an anthology called "DC Pride".

The 80 page trade paper back is a collection of 9 stories, all starring the LGBTQIA super heroes of the DC universe.

(click the images to make them bigger - the stories will be in the posts that follow)

[CellarDweller115]

“The Wrong Side of the Looking Glass” by James Tynion IV, Trung Le Nguyen and Aditya Bidikar:


This story stars Batwoman (now a character on TV) and deals with her growing up as a young lesbian.