As a student in the social welfare department, my mind often
turns to topics of oppression and discrimination. In fact, much of
the curriculum that we are presented with details variations of
these topics.
Some of our speakers have drawn parallels between the
experiences of gay and lesbian people and those of ethnic
minorities. For instance, one speaker on the subject of same-sex
marriages called the concept of civil unions (recently approved by
the legislature and governor of Vermont) “separate but
equal” for gays and straights in the same way that drinking
fountains were supposedly “separate but equal” for
African Americans and whites before the civil rights movement.
Of course, his point was that neither of these things are equal
by virtue of the fact that they are so separate. Numerous other
comparisons between groups of minorities have been made by speakers
on behalf of the lesbian and gay community.
In my experience, however, I have encountered many members of
ethnic minority groups who take offense at these comparisons. They
insist strongly that their experience is entirely different from
anything that gay and lesbian people might experience. Members of
the gay community also occasionally argue that they are so
different from everybody else that there really is no
comparison.
While the point is well taken, this argument is scary in that it
promotes a divisiveness that we are all better off without. It has
the potential to separate each group completely from each other. If
used this way, it is detrimental to attempt to right the wrongs
perpetuated by those controlled by ignorance and hate.
At the risk of offending some people of color (but with the
intent to promote cooperation between groups), I have to point out
some similarities that I see between the experiences of the lesbian
and gay population and those within ethnic minorities.
The first is the most obvious. We are both victims of hate
crimes. Within the last century, we all have heard numerous reports
of violence inflicted on members of both groups. Of course, two
rather heinous, recent examples stand out in most of our minds: an
African American man being dragged endlessly by a truck, and a gay
teenager murdered in cold blood. These events have shocked us, but
they haven’t really surprised us, because we all realize that
hate is tolerated in our society. And members of all oppressed
groups experience the effects of such hatred.
There are also more subtle forms of discrimination experienced
by all oppressed groups. People in this day and age are still
denied jobs or apartments based on the color of their skin or the
person whom they choose to love.
Various studies throughout the 1980s and 1990s documented this.
In fact, there are still people who investigate discrimination
based on race in the areas of housing and employment. And members
of the gay community are very cognizant of the continuing attitudes
that cause many landlords and businesses to deny lesbian and gay
people their requests for apartments and jobs.
Another similarity in the experiences of lesbian and gay people
and that of ethnic minorities is the internalization of the outer
hate of society. Consider the fact that many gay teens commit
suicide because they feel that the surrounding society, especially
the part that includes their family and friends, will never be able
to accept them for who they are. The Seattle Times reported that
“gay teens commit suicide at a rate two or three times that
of heterosexual adolescents” (April 27, 1997).
Consider also that many ethnic minorities are forced into
“ghettos” and a lifestyle of poverty, leading to some
of their teenage children opting to join gangs. One gang member I
worked with at a group home told me, “Death doesn’t
scare me. I welcome death.”
The point here is that the oppression felt by our society in
these young people’s lives makes them see life itself as
unsavory, worthless and hopeless.
The reaction to this feeling of hopelessness within both types
of communities has also been remarkably similar. Brown pride, black
pride, gay pride … these are all common phrases that denote
movements meant to help members of minority groups recognize the
benefits of being who they are. It is ironic that the heart of
these movements is essentially the same, yet they are so separate
from each other. This separation is necessary, to a point.
How can a person have pride in something that they don’t
really understand? And how can they understand it without
experiencing membership in the group?
To a point, this is wonderfully productive and great for each
individual who experiences it. But soon a problem arises: each
individual within these groups is taught how his or her specific
difference is beneficial to the exclusion of other groups.
Hopefully, each group can find a place where it can not only
encourage pride within its own membership, but also effectively
reach out to learn from and teach other groups as well.
This suggestion speaks to another essential point: the members
of these groups overlap. As a member of the gay community, I travel
often in West Hollywood and the surrounding areas, and I can report
that the lesbian and gay population includes many people of
color.
Imagine how it feels to be one of these people and hear the
arguments about how different the experience is between people of
color and gay men and lesbians. Could it be that you would feel
forced to pick an allegiance? If you are an African American gay
man, is it more important to be black or gay? And why should you
have to make a choice? Certainly an acceptance of each group by the
other would prevent this situation from happening.
I do not want to discount the differences. Ethnic minorities
have histories that are passed down generation to generation in
ways that gay and lesbian people do not. Yet lesbian and gay
history is as tragic and inspirational as the histories of people
of color. And both histories need to be rediscovered so that
America can know the diversity and richness of its own past. These
are unique stories, yet the biggest commonality that runs through
this entire discussion is that of discrimination and
oppression.
The reasons for the oppression have been varied, yet oppression
is oppression. Regardless of who is experiencing it, it feels very
much the same. Saying that one kind of oppression is not worth
fighting can legitimize it in the eyes of some people. Getting
assigned this legitimacy then encourages people to oppress whomever
they want to oppress.
After all, if it is acceptable to be cruel to one group even in
subtle ways, then maybe it’s even acceptable to be cruel to
another group.
So by staying separate and insisting that different experiences
preclude action, groups on both sides may be opening up avenues to
new forms of cruelty against other types of people. I fervently
hope that we all can move past this and unite in our efforts to
combat social racism and homophobia. And I congratulate the student
groups who recently joined together in response to campus hate
crimes as a first step in the effort to do so.