Perverts Have Rights Too

Imagine my surprise when I read, in my dis-oriented state, that New York City was creating a public High School for gay, lesbian, bi-sexual and transgender students. I was shocked. I pictured classmates and family members pointing out suspected gay students to authorities. I envisioned gay students being dragged off to a distant school with pink triangles sewn on their clothing. How could this happen in America?

My immediate response was that people of courage and conviction needed to rise up and oppose this injustice. If we stood quietly by what would follow? Gays at the back of the bus? Lesbian drinking fountains? Homosexual Jim Crow laws? This action seemed more fitting for Alabama in the 1950s than New York City in the twenty-first century. Had we forgotten that ‘separate but equal is not equal?’

The extent of my dis-orientation became clear when I read that rather than oppose the school district -- homosexual advocacy groups generally support the idea. In fact the funding for the school comes from a homosexual advocacy organization.

I guess don’t really understand political correctness. I thought that homosexual activists wanted equal rights. I though that they wanted to end discrimination and be treated just like everyone else. When my hometown added sexual orientation (is Orient-ation politically correct?) to its Civil Rights ordinance, activists assured the city that they only wanted equality and fairness.

Why is it that groups that have fought for so long against segregation and discrimination now want to segregate themselves? Why is it that those who have struggled for equality now demand special treatment?

This is not limited to homosexuals. Black proms and fraternities are becoming commonplace in our high schools and colleges. Meanwhile, organizations like the Citadel, Augusta National and the Boy Scouts have been under fire for their exclusionary policies.

In their quest to become part of the American mainstream, homosexual activists have made great strides in recent years. The introduction of likeable gay characters into comic strips and television shows has been a brilliant success. Public debates like the one we had in my home town over adding sexual orientation to the local civil rights ordinance have portrayed homosexuals as ordinary people who just want to live, work and raise families in the community like everybody else.

On the other hand just when they begin to make headway, issues like gay marriage and homosexual high schools appear on the national scene. When I told my daughter about the New York School District plan she said, “Great, a school for freaks.” There seems to be a backlash developing in this country against gay activism and President Bush’s condemnation of gay marriage (you may recall that President Clinton opposed gay marriage as well) is just the tip of the iceberg.

As for me despite what my political opponents say, I support equal rights for gays. What I oppose is special rights. A gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender American has exactly the same rights I do. The Fourteenth Amendment guarantees equal protection under the law.

After all, in this country, perverts have rights too.