Inspirational Advertisement

While browsing the internet, I stumbled upon something that I found to be the most inspirational thing that I've witnessed for quite some time. It has to be on of the best LGBT acceptance ads in history. See for yourself.

GetUp! in Australia released a commercial on Thanksgiving  from the viewpoint of one half of a gay relationship. It increases in suspense until that final scene that emphasizes what they want legalized-- the right for a couple of any orientation to be able to officially confess their love for another. By showing only one perspective of the couple, the video infers that a gay relationship is no different than a straight one. They don't cover the ad in rose-tinted paint making it seem like gay marriage is superior and should be idolized, but rather stress that both homosexual and heterosexual relationships have their ups and downs.

Advertisements are becoming more and more gay-friendly. I've also found a McDonald's ad that was promoting equality and acceptance with the slogan, "Come as you are."

Why haven't I seen ads like this in America?

Corrupt Schooling

After seeing this, I was immediately enraged. This picture is from a UK report by Essex County Council. It infers that students being targeted by hoomophobia are bringing it upon themselves by "not acting straight enough." Why do I keep coming across more and more news articles about corrupt teachers screwing over their students chances of getting any protection from bullying. The answer to not being bullied isn't to bottle yourself up and act like everybody else. It's to stand up and speak. When students are being told to style their hair differently, speak in a lower register, sit differently, dress differently, and even walk differently just so that they don't come off as gay to the other students, they're promoting the idea that being gay is wrong and that it's something that people should hide. People can go further than this and sometimes become completely desensitized when an actual tragedy takes place. For example, A teacher in Missouri at Joplin High school, named Jim Whitney, reponded to a student commiting suicide from homophobic bullying with the comment of, "Moral of the story: Don't be gay." When Whitney was asked, "How many more kids have to die before someone realizes that this is an actual issue?" again, the insensitive responce was,  "11-13 ought to do it. Somewhere in that vicinity."

I find it disgusting.

When do people grow up?

When I was in kindergarten, my best friend, Jacquelin, refused to tell me her weight. I was curious about how fast I was growing up compared to my friends. All of my other friends told me how much they weighed, but she kept up her defenses up and wouldn't let them down. Finally, I asked her why she wouldn't let me know something that mattered that little. And her responce was, "My mommy told me not to tell anybody anything about myself that couldn't already be seen. She said that as people get older, they get meaner." My mom had told me differently. My mom told me that as I got older, people around me would get more mature." I wish I could go back to my kindergarten self and tell Jacquelin that, for the most part, she was right.

As far as people go, they get less compassionate. When you're in kindergarten, everyone  just wants to be friends. They accept anyone who wants to join and the most hurtful thing that anyone can say is, "Well, I'm not your friend anymore!" But everything changes as the years go by. People hold grudges, they find new ways to hurt others both physically and emotionally, and they betray those close to them usually for selfish reasons. Words like "stupid" and "butthead" become "faggot" and "whore" and it seems that hardly anybody retains even the slightest ounce of innocence that they had all those years ago.