Post-Sexuality...?

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/dan-heching/are-we-post-sexuality-yet-my-date-with-a-straight-guy_b_1648323.html

In an article on the Huffington Post (linked above), sexuality gets a little reversed. A gay male by the name of Dan Heching works in an gay organization. While working there, he becomes attracted to another co-worker of his and develops quite the crush. They exchange work related emails for a while until Heching finally works up the nerve to ask him out in one of the work emails. The co-worker agrees to go out but plans fall through a couple times and Heching says he moved on from this idea until the co-worker contacts him to go on what Heching thought was clearly defined and communicated as a date. They go out to a nice restaurant, have some wine and talk; partway into the dinner, Heching’s “date” states that he is straight as if he finally understood what Heching’s idea of this dinner was. Heching internally debates on whether to stay or just get up and walk out; he decides on staying to tough out the now awkward situation. He walks his co-worker to his car, kisses him on the cheek as if they were still on this date and through his bitterness, he cuts off any personal contact for the remainder of the time he worked at the organization. He later discovers an article on a dating site where his ex-crush is being interviewed and had the view that he was the one being mislead and went on this “date” on the pretenses that it was for networking purposes. 

(Watch from 22:00-24:00)

In this episode of Catfish, Keyonnah is tricked by "Dee", who is impersonating as Bow Wow. Keyonnah has been in relationship with "fake Bow Wow" and in this scene, she meets the impersonator... who ends up actually being a girl. Talk about Catfish curveball! Dee (fake Bow Wow) explains how she regularly convinces girls that she is a guy and sometimes the ladies will actually still be interested in Dee after finding out Dee in fact is a girl. In this situation, however, Keyonnah feels extremely betrayed and violated. Does sexuality matter? Does it trump "personal connection"? Keyonnah would argue "yes", but the Skylar article would argue in opposition. In the Skylar article, a young F.T.M named Layne was insistent on furthering action to complete his transformation into being a boy as he went off to college. His mother relented and allowed the testosterone injections, so he went into his freshman orientation presented as a guy. There, "he met Mimi, and felt an instant connection; they started dating and, as sophomores, were still together" (Talbot, 59). Layne's parents, Melissa and Chip, explain, "Young people today engage in really different kinds of relationships that I couldn't have even imagined when I was sixteen... They don't immediately close off physical possibilities if something works for them emotionally" (Talbot, 59). We don't know what Mimi's sexual and gender orientation is/was, but this example argued that sexuality doesn't matter and doesn't trump "personal connection." Has our society come to this point of needing labels explicitly placed on us, or does sexuality even matter when it comes to relationships?

In our main text, "Are We Post-Sexuality Yet? My Date With a Straight Guy", the author Dan Heching becomes an unfortunate product of sexual orientational miscommunication, and is obviously hurt by it. Like Keyonnah, who was convinced she was in romantic relationship with a guy, Dan was also convinced that he was in a romantic relationship with a gay guy. They were both unpleasantly surprised, resulting in heartache and internal confusion. As a result of Dan's circumstance, he argues that he is "all for blurring the lines and allowing sexuality to be nebulous... (but) boundaries will forever remain, to an extent, because there is still that uncomfortable part of the whole sexuality thing, the sex part, which a lot of outspoken voices in the LGBT arena keep mentioning is important not to brush under the rug. This is a necessary point, because if we continue to allow the nuts-and-bolts part of sexuality to be casually overlooked, bullshit like the above story may continue to happen" (Heching, 10). Basically, Heching has an understanding of the blurred lines of sexuality, but becomes upset when he himself is is hit with the reality that his former date is actually straight. He argues that in essence, everyone needs to show their "gay, bi, or straight" nametag, or else people (like him) will get emotionally hurt. 

This whole idea of sexual ambiguity and sweeping sexual identities under the rug really is what these stories are arguing for, while the idea of “post sexuality” for Heching is ok with him; his personal situation with his co-worker has him conflicted with this idea because of his sexual identity being gay. The same could be said for Dee and Keyonnah, while this situation differs in the sense that Dee intentionally misleads Keyonnah. Dee feels that even though she targets straight females with her Catfish identity, sexuality can be swept under the rug and they can move past the physical aspects of the relationship because of the emotional connection she obtains with Keyonnah. Now the problem in both these situations is both ethical and moral. Was it moral for Heching’s co-worker to not “come out” as straight in a predominately gay work environment? Heching’s situation does not have too much confliction morally, because I feel it was a complicated situation of miscommunication. Heching says “Hell, he may have even made "playing gay" into a specialty of his in the workplace in order to fit in or make things less complicated.” (Heching 1), and by saying this he feels that it was immoral for his co-worker to not identify him self as straight. This would have saved him a lot of time, energy and emotional attachment even though it was at a minimal level. The morality of this situation cannot be defined one way or another.  Also was it moral for Dee to trick Keyonnah into loving her catfish identity in the hopes of dating her? This was not the most moral (this is more ethical) action but Dee may feel that she can’t obtain this fantasy of hers in another way. She does have good intentions with her emotions towards Keyonnah, so in a way she is morally correct in the emotional aspect. The only problem that stands in the way of both of these situations is all the people involved have conflictions with their sexual identities. So the idea of sexuality being swept under the rug for the sake of emotional attachment does not always work in the real world.

The classic morals of the dating scene are very much blurred with in these two stories. The ethics of these situations are a tad bit clearer; the perusing person does not go about obtaining their end game goal very well. Heching disregards typical office ethics by asking his co-worker out on a date through work related email. Dee personifies a false identity to obtain her fantasy of sleeping with straight women and ends up becoming emotionally attached to Keyonnah.  They both let their desires overpower what may be seen as ethical and unethical. Heching could be ethical but as we have never been in a gay workplace, we do not know if this is an ethical approach to dating or workplace etiquette. Dee clearly violates ethics in both the dating world  and in just plain relations ships of any kind by lying.

In essence, ambiguity in sexuality and gender wouldn't matter or deter two people from being in a relationship, but that's just an "on-paper" theory. In reality, there are many implications and emotional pains that come into play when each person holds a specific orientation and there is a discrepancy between the two. How could sexuality be swept under the rug when it affects relationships? I, personally, am not able to be swayed between my sexual and gender orientation, so it would be important for me to understand who I'm interested in. I'm sure I'm not the only one who feels this way, and whether Dan's crush would have said, "I am straight" or "I don't like you that way", it absolutely boils down to emotional and sexual compatibility, or at least the possibility of it.  There's no "skirting around" sexuality and gender identity, in most cases, and the lack of this communication results in heartache and confusion, possibly in one's own gender and sexual identity. Heching is asking this same question if his story means we are starting to become "post sexuality" and Dee seems to feel this way already. In the real world, not everyone will fall into the place on the sexual identity/gender identity spectrum of emotional attachment trumping all other factors of romantic relationships.

By: Aaron Bolton and Elyssa Buhl

Sexualization and Polarity of Halloween

With halloween just around the corner, I cannot help but to draw connections between the class and the holiday. The costumes for men and women are so drastically different, even if they are supposed to be dressed as the same thing.

It wasnt even difficult for me to find a pair of costumes like this. The mans costume is that of an actual referee, he actually looks like what he is supposed to be. It doesnt show off his body as exceptionally manly and it is completely acceptable. The womens costume on the other hand is absolutely ridiculous. It is hardly clothing and it would be a stretch to consider her a referee. The costume simply provides an excuse for her to show off her chest and legs. The women can wear the "feminine" costume and be considered a "slut" or "whore" but the only other option if they want to be a referee is to wear the mens costume, and while they would look like an actual referee and therefore it should be considered a legitimate option for a costume for women, they would probably get weird looks and people would make a lot of judgements about a woman who wore the mens costume. It emphasizes the double standard society has for women and the impossible expectations.

Skinny Girl

This is another product that is aimed directly at women, and is supposed to lead them to believe that if they drink this specific product, then they get not only drink alcohol, but also limit there calories.

There are so many girls that worry about their caloric intake, and this is because the media has put so much pressure on girls to be “skinny”. This product plays on a girls insecurity, making a girl want to have this type of drink in hopes that she can look like the girl on the label.

The picture is what is printed on every label of this bottle. Now what I see, is a tall, almost Barbie-like looking girl. She has the thinnest waist, long legs, tiny feet, and the perfect pony tail. This is an unrealistic portrayal, or a false image, of a woman can physically look like. This women in real life, would even look distorted because her body proportions are off.

This affects all shapes of women, large or “skinny”. The girl on the label, looks like she’s having a girl time, perhaps she’s the life of the party and the best looking girl in the room. That makes women what to be like her. This envy can cause the thinnest of girls to feel self-conscious, and “larger” girls resent their bodies. But this body type is impossible to achieve, leaving girls desperately clinging to false hope and self-hate towards their own bodies.

They even have Skinny Girl linked with weight watchers. To a girl who desperately wants to lose weight, this image can easily become their goal image. And linking it with Weight Watchers almost makes it seem not only possible, but even a direct outcome of the Weight Watchers program.

This image can distort a women’s mind and make even the “skinny” woman feel large, when they don’t match the shape. This drink is not a magic potion that will make a girl look like this, but it is a magic potion for self-consciousness about a girl's weight and body shape. Women see this type of silhouette on their products daily, and after awhile it becomes hard to ignore, leaving women to feel less about themselves. But this product won't actually help women to look like the label. This drink has calories and sugar just like any other drink, and that's where they get women.

Bridesmaids

The film, Bridesmaids was not only a top of the charts comedy, but it challenged the gender norms that are portrayed in our everyday media. First of all, the movie was an all female cast. Sure, there was a male love interest, but the main characters were all female. How often do you see a film with an all female cast, especially a comedy? Not only was the movie centered around females, it was also co-written by one. The flick is said to be an extension of  the clever sketches written by the main character, Kirstin Wig from her days on Saturday Night Live.

Unlike every other chick flick, which normally portray women as boring and typical, Bridesmaids offers a very different view of women. This flick portrays women as diverse and interesting, but still retains a relatable women feel.  The film shows that women can be just as raunchy, vulgar, and pathetic as men. The ultimate testament to this is the infamous food poisoning scene placed in the film. After eating at restaurant, the bridesmaid go with the bride to try on dresses. While at the very nice, expensive, and white store, the women start to feel sick. This eventually escalates to the point of the women fighting for the bathroom to dispose of their bodily fluids. The scene goes as far as to have the bride relieve herself in the wedding dress, in the street. I don't think we have EVER seen this type of behavior from women in the media. Women are portrayed to not have these issues, to be pretty, perfect, etc. and this very real and quite disgusting scene challenges the norm of women in every way.

Bridesmaids food poisoning scene
VIEWER DISCRETION ADVISED
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eLbpcnzUdvw

The movie not only challenges gender norms, but sexual as well. The movie opens up with a sex scene between Kirstin Wig's character and her "friend with benefits." The scene is very awkward and funny and pokes fun at men. In this scene alone the viewer can tell the movie is written from a female perspective, but not the typical girl view shown in other female flicks, but the real view that is never really represented in the media.

As time goes on, I think we can see that women's role in films are starting to change and people are responding to that it. Ten years ago we would have never imagined a film like this, but now it seems like people can't get enough.

Man Law

In the first commercial there are a few things that stick out, these are beer commercial and since beer is considered to be a guys drink, even though many women drink it as well, this series of commercial focuses on "man laws." The stereotypes portrayed in the first commercial are that men only care about sex and looks.

At the 2:05 mark the men of the square table make another man law "no fruit in beer" stating that men drink beer and only beer. Burt Reynolds emphasizes this when he points out a bunch of girly things that happen with other drinks and when the guy to his left actually takes him seriously he gives him a look that say son, I'm going to need to take one of your man cards now. 

The very next commercial continues down the "beer is for men and real men drink beer" path by bringing up football. Sports like basketball and soccer have female leagues but there's no such thing when it comes to football, even in high school leagues. By identifying with manly men talking about football, Miller continues to associate itself with men.

This commercial is not only about manly things and keeping men from doing girly things to beer but it also is trying to show what kind of men drink beer. Triple H, cowboys, Burt Reynolds, football players, all of these people are very desirable people to be. They are famous, athletic, buff and tuff all of which are things most men would want to be. More importantly to a lot of guys, these are things guys think women want in their men.

I found that the way this video was perceived in its comment section (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8RLCD-PpWqU) to be interesting as well. A lot of the comments stated that light beer wasn't even manly in the first place. Clearly, many people with this idea assumed the same thing as the people behind these commercials which is that beer is for men. 

Sweet Dee from Always Sunny

Horror and gore movies with sexual icing is a popular phenomenon. Many horror movies depict women as the victims, where inflicting pain upon them is a pleasure for men (Saw, Hostel, etc). It’s one of the many ways to sexualized women by making them fully dominated by men; mentally, emotionally, physically, sexually. On the other hand, we also have heroine, whether it is as superheroes (catwoman, wonder woman, etc) or femme fatale in noir films. And they are all sexualized, too, but in a completely different way than women in horror movies. If they are superheroes, they are wearing spandex or leather clothings. These examples make me think if there is any portrayal of females in popular movies or TV completely detached from any sexual stigmatizations.  

                ….which brings me to the next point

                Sweet Dee from It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia is one of my favorite characters out there. She is an obnoxious, loud, prejudiced, cranky woman. She is the only female in the gang (with 4 other members and all of them own a bar) and is very often bullied as a bird by the gang members. But she’s not a victim of a bully since she also dares to give order to her dad, she picks a fight with one of the boys, she pees in a jar (in a car) when drunk, among many else. Despite her aggressive—often unladylike attitude, she is longing for a real relationship and she has to try real hard to prove her male friends that she is still attractive. Unfortunately, most of her dates prove that she is the other way around.

Dee, teaching her dad some lessons

If you only see her through her appearance, she actually fits the category of an ideal girl: pretty face, slim body, she always wears a fitting top, she has a normal high pitch voice of a lady. Her body and appearance tells that she is a nice looking lady with a possibility of great compassionate personality. But her personality is nowhere near that ideal girl category. In fact, as I have explained above, you can see how her personality is quite manly aggressive without being tomboyish. To certain extent, there is very little to none sexual stigmatization in her character. She isn’t portrayed as a sexy woman, although she can easily be one through her nice looking body, her silliness, or dominating character. We have seen that female characters who depict a not-so-normal personality can look quirky, cute, or even strong. She has all the potentials to be the sexual accessory of the gang, but she is very far from that. This proves that this character is barely sexualized at all.

Perhaps this is a slightly exaggerated example of how female would be like on TV/movies if they are completely not sexualized. But to me it’s extremely interesting to see that one way this is done is by making her character very similar to the males in the show. The males present a stereotypical arrogant, narcissistic, bully character. And with her personality, Sweet Dee blends in really well with other boys, making her somewhat equal with other guys. Although she was being bullied as a bird many times, there are also moments when she performs as the ‘winner’ and get the chance to ‘bully’ or ridicule other guys. Is this a realistic portrayal of females? Definitely not. But is this a ‘fair’ representation of females compared with the males in the movie? Maybe yes. At the least, she is depicted as an equal with her gang family; she is neither above them nor below them.

Sex sells. And it’s everywhere.

Sex, as in the act of sex or sexualizing objects and people, literally sells everything – is it ‘right’? Probably not, but in a world where sex, violence and advertisements are an every day norm, I would have to argue that advertisers are pushing boundaries but we as the consumers are allowing it to happen.

I had to watch (listen) to this twice before I actually HEARD what he was saying. I was distracted, and I’m not ashamed! It’s exactly what he wanted and he proved his point. He isn’t trying to sell me anything, well, he is trying to ‘sell’ me to stop being distracted and use the internet to learn, but overall he’s trying to show me that it doesn’t matter what is being said or sold, if a half naked man is in front of me, I am distracted and distractions are good in marketing.

Sex is a primitive instinct, and from a marketing standpoint it does make sense as to why they use sex to SELL us products or services. Sex can have a biological, physical and emotional impact on consumers. Advertisers are smart. They know that men are visually stimulated creatures and that women are sensory stimulated creatures and they market straight to us.

According to Jean Kilbourne, advertisements sell us more than just products. They sell values, they sell images, they sell concepts of love, sexuality and success and perhaps more important, of normalcy. To a great extent they tell us who we and who we should be (Killing Us Softly 4).

When it comes to how SEX IS SOLD, many don’t realize or remember a time when everywhere they turned there wasn’t an advertisement selling products that many times don’t even relate to sex. I know I have a hard time remembering what it was like to not see images like this selling me a product, tv show or service.

                                   

The text on the bottom says "Men don't want to look at naked men"

Looks like nipples, but are bandaids from Vampire bites

I have never seen this ad, but it is playing on having to 'come out' as gay and being 'out on the town'

Miller/Coors has come under fire for this Miller Lite commercial:

What this commercial tells us is that to be a man, you have to act like a man. You can't have interests or traits that are considered feminine and that if you do, you can't take part in hobbies (beer drinking) that is considered to be masculine.

Then you have a commercial like this from Playboy:

It's telling us that Playboy influenced what women's pubic hair looks like. Because men would look at Playboy and had an image of what the pubic area was supposed to look like and that influenced women to make changes.

Advertisers are attempting one thing – get us to remember their product or service so when we go shopping next we will choose their brand. Their inscription devices are the people they choose to represent their image, the language they use and the story they want us to see.

Undoubtedly, the increased openness towards sex has allowed vast changes in education and acceptance, but as consumers and humans – we can and should change how we react and ‘see’ these ads, because if we continue allowing the messages we see everyday to cloud our minds and change our behavior – we will continue to show children that this really is ‘normal’.

--------

If you have 45 min, here is the movie “Killing Us Softly 4” by Jean Kilbourne.

http://vimeo.com/73446465

Sex All Over Our Music Media

I chose the song "In My Head" by Jason Derulo. It's pretty self explanatory and I'm sure most of us have heard it... but here are the lyrics:

"In My Head"

Jason Derülo.
Deluga Heights.
J. J. J. J. J. R.
Come on.

Everybody's looking for love. Oh. Oh.
Ain't that the reason you're at this club. Oh. Oh.
You ain't gonna find a dance with him. No. Oh.
Got a better solution for you girl. Oh. Oh.

Just leave with me now, Say the word and we'll go.
I'll be your teacher. I'll show you the ropes.
You'll see a side of love you've never known.
I can see it going down, going down.

In my head, I see you all over me.
In my head, you fulfill my fantasy.
In my head, you'll be screaming more.
In my head, it's going down.
In my head, it's going down.
In my head. Yeah. In my head. Oh yeah.

Some dudes know all the right things to say.
When it comes down to it, it's just a game.
Instead of talking let me demonstrate. Yeah.
Get down to business let's skip foreplay.

Just leave with me now. Say the word and we'll go.
I'll be your teacher. I'll show you the ropes.
You'll see a side of love you've never known.
I can see it going down, going down.

In my head, I see you all over me.
In my head, you fulfill my fantasy.
In my head, you'll be screaming more.
In my head, it's going down.
In my head, it's going down.
In my head.

Break it down. Ay-oh. Come on. Ay-oh. Ay-oh.
You singing to me baby in my head right now. Ay-oh. Ay-oh. Come on.
She'll be screaming out when it all goes down.

Just leave with me now. Say the word and we'll go. We can go.
I'll be your teacher. I'll show you the ropes.
You'll see a side of love you've never known.
I can see it going down, going down.

In my head, I see you all over me.
In my head, you fulfill my fantasy.
In my head, you'll be screaming no.
In my head, it's going down.
In my head, it's going down.

In my head, I see you all over me.
In my head, you fulfill my fantasy.
In my head, you'll be screaming more.
In my head, it's going down.
In my head, it's going down.
In my head.

When this song came out and it was all over the radio, I honestly didn't think much of it. I just sang along, no big deal. But this past year I learned a lot about song writing and wrote songs myself, so that caused me to subconsciously pay attention to each song I was listening to... and when this song came on, I couldn't help but laugh out loud. I pictured this artist sitting down, pencil in hand, jotting down these lyrics, and it just made me shake my head, not to mention totally creeped me out. Yeah, it's a catchy song, but it's pretty obvious what he's trying to say: he wants to take this girl home, he's imagining it all "going down". I'm sure some women would find this song to be attractive because the guy wants her so badly, but I find it unimpressive and frankly, gross... this guy would have a fat chance of "taking me home". This song is just an example of our pop culture in music; it revolves around sex, it's focused on sex, it teaches us about sex and forms our perception of it and what it's supposed to be or how it's supposed to happen. My opinion: it cheapens sex.

My question: is this media positively or negatively impacting our society's view of sex. In this song, it's indicating that they're both at a club to find "love", so it he is assuming she wants to go home with them, that either way he would convince her. We sing songs like this without thought, it's just another song on the radio, and usually have become numb to the subtexts. For example, the song "Sail" by AWOLNATION was really popular, and I loved the song. However, when I started noticing what I was singing and what the song was saying, it broke my heart. One main verse of the song: "Maybe I should cry for help, maybe I should kill myself, blame it on my A.D.D. baby". Lyrics like this - so prevalent, but most of the time, lyrics rarely register in our minds as we sing along in songs like these.

As I was thinking about Steven Crowder's article on "waiting until marriage" and Laci's sexuality blog, I noticed a few things. First off, Steven would probably comment on this song saying that it degrades sex in general, and promotes sex as an object of simple physical desire; love is about me fulfilling my own sexual fantasy, instead of about self-denying servanthood, that love is patient and love is kind, it is not self seeking, but does indeed result and manifest in sex. On the other hand, Laci would probably think that this song isn't a big deal, it is reality, and acceptable because it's important in any relationship to please each other sexually and to explore sexuality, and it's fun! As I was thinking about our "trans" unit and each article we've read, I realized that if this song "In My Head" was Jason Derulo singing instead about a boy he met in a club, it would cause complete uproar and we would definitely think twice about how we sang along. However, I then realized that songs like "I Kissed A Girl" by Katy Perry and "Same Love" by Macklemore, have been very popular and fairly uncontroversial. The "graphicness" of "In My Head" differs from those songs, but still, I wonder if music media will soon become more universally open in terms of female and male gender roles, as well as male and female sexual identity. 

Same Love Skeletons

Same Love by Macklemore and Ryan Lewis

When I was in the third grade I thought that I was gay,
'Cause I could draw, my uncle was, and I kept my room straight.
I told my mom, tears rushing down my face
She's like "Ben you've loved girls since before pre-k, trippin' "
Yeah, I guess she had a point, didn't she?
Bunch of stereotypes all in my head.
I remember doing the math like, "Yeah, I'm good at little league"
A preconceived idea of what it all meant
For those that liked the same sex
Had the characteristics
The right wing conservatives think it's a decision
And you can be cured with some treatment and religion
Man-made rewiring of a predisposition
Playing God, aw nah here we go
America the brave still fears what we don't know
And God loves all his children, is somehow forgotten
But we paraphrase a book written thirty-five-hundred years ago
I don't know

And I can't change
Even if I tried
Even if I wanted to
And I can't change
Even if I tried
Even if I wanted to
My love
My love
My love
She keeps me warm
She keeps me warm
She keeps me warm
She keeps me warm

If I was gay, I would think hip-hop hates me
Have you read the YouTube comments lately?
"Man, that's gay" gets dropped on the daily
We become so numb to what we're saying
A culture founded from oppression
Yet we don't have acceptance for 'em
Call each other faggots behind the keys of a message board
A word rooted in hate, yet our genre still ignores it
Gay is synonymous with the lesser
It's the same hate that's caused wars from religion
Gender to skin color, the complexion of your pigment
The same fight that led people to walk outs and sit ins
It's human rights for everybody, there is no difference!
Live on and be yourself
When I was at church they taught me something else
If you preach hate at the service those words aren't anointed
That holy water that you soak in has been poisoned
When everyone else is more comfortable remaining voiceless
Rather than fighting for humans that have had their rights stolen
I might not be the same, but that's not important
No freedom till we're equal, damn right I support it

(I don't know)

CHORUS

We press play, don't press pause
Progress, march on
With the veil over our eyes
We turn our back on the cause
Till the day that my uncles can be united by law
When kids are walking 'round the hallway plagued by pain in their heart
A world so hateful some would rather die than be who they are
And a certificate on paper isn't gonna solve it all
But it's a damn good place to start
No law is gonna change us
We have to change us
Whatever God you believe in
We come from the same one
Strip away the fear
Underneath it's all the same love
About time that we raised up... sex

CHORUS

(Love is patient
Love is kind) X5

 

I am reading two different pieces that are going to be tied together in the end. The first piece I am reading is Same Love by Ryan Lewis and Mackelmore. This song came out within the past few years and became quite popular. The lyrics to this song are so true, and I abide by them.

Bunch of stereotypes all in my head: I feel that this is the hardest thing that gays have to deal with: the stereotypes and the rude people that follow them. Everywhere a gay goes, someone will always judge them. They are still not accepted into society today. There are some states that even fire people for being gay (http://www.upworthy.com/29-states-can-fire-you-for-being-gay-is-your-state-one-of-them) ! I feel sorry for these people; they have had to go through a much harder life than the average American has experienced.

The right wing conservatives think it's a decision
And you can be cured with some treatment and religion
Man-made rewiring of a predisposition: Not everybody knows that it is not the fault of the gay person for being gay. It is within their genes and how their brain and cells are oriented. They cannot decide to be gay or straight; they might be able to but they never will truly be that way. According to this article, they can agree with that: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/10/23/homosexuality--choice-born-science_n_2003361.html. People need to be understanding that not nurture nor nature will change the way a person feels, and neither will rewiring the genes of a person.

And God loves all his children, is somehow forgotten: Yes, I feel that gays are forgotten to be loved by others. They see them as being different and not normal, therefore they don’t show the same respect and kindness towards them. Even though gay people are different mentally, they are still the same physically and are still human beings that should be treated equally.

And I can't change
Even if I tried
Even if I wanted to: I feel that people don’t understand this about gays. They cannot simply change the way they feel. It is impossible. They need to be accepted as is.

Have you read the YouTube comments lately?
"Man, that's gay" gets dropped on the daily

Yet we don't have acceptance for 'em
Call each other faggots behind the keys of a message board
A word rooted in hate, yet our genre still ignores it: It disgusts me how rude people are to each other, especially to gays. It is so rude how people can throw out derogatory words to make a certain person feel bad. I just don’t understand why people cannot watch what they say, and treat others the same way.

The same fight that led people to walk outs and sit ins
It's human rights for everybody, there is no difference!
Live on and be yourself:
 When everyone else is more comfortable remaining voiceless
Rather than fighting for humans that have had their rights stolen

No freedom till we're equal, damn right I support it: I believe that everyone deserves equal rights. Women and African Americans went through the exact same things that the gays are now experiencing. A gay revolution has already begun. States are legalizing gay marriages, gays are fighting for their rights, etc. this only makes me happy to see that people are fighting for their rights. Not only are the lesbians, gays, bisexuals, transgender fighting for their rights, but questionings, intersexes and allies are also fighting for the freedom of gays. According to this new york times article, http://www.nytimes.com/2013/01/10/fashion/generation-lgbtqia.html?pagewanted=all&_r=1&, not only is it important for gays to fight for their freedom, it is also important that their allies help them out along the way. Gays will not have equal rights unless they have some people who are already accepting of them, their allies.

A world so hateful some would rather die than be who they are
And a certificate on paper isn't gonna solve it all
But it's a damn good place to start
No law is gonna change us
We have to change us

Underneath it's all the same love
About time that we raised up... sex: I agree completely with these lyrics. Gays will not be treated equal unless we change that! A law or piece of paper will not change how they are treated; only the human race can. People need to change how they view gays; they are the same as everybody else, just differing in their sexuality. Like what Macklemore said, underneath it is all the same love. Underneath their clothes, skin, cells, etc. Love is love. Society needs to understand this! Gays, lesbians, transgenders, and bisexuals are all human beings that love someone the same way a heterosexual would love their significant other. In order to change how they are treated, society first needs to change their views and understanding of their lifestyle and sexuality.

This song ties into the picture of two skeletons kissing. It is asked if it is two men, two women, or if it is a man and a women kissing. It doesn’t matter who it is. It only matters that it is love and that they are sharing a connection between each other. Both the song and the picture are trying to say that love is the same whether it is between a man and a woman, a woman and a woman, or a man and a man. Love is a beautiful thing that can be shared between anybody. This needs to be understood by society and acted upon in a positive way. Even though the gender identity and sexual orientation of some people differ against the community norms, they are still human. Yes sexuality is a phenomenon, but how you perceive it is only inscriptive and can be changed for the better. Society needs to change as a whole to address the phenomenal sexuality dilemma. Yes, they can see that people who are gay typically have a certain tone to their voice, dress differently, or even behave differently (which are all inscriptive devices signifying that someone is gay), but, society needs to overcome these discursive practices and try to abolish the stereotypes and criticism towards gays.