Into the Belly of the Beast

Tomorrow is my 10 year high school reunion. After much deliberating, I – along with my best friend and others from our “group” – decided to attend. I’ll be taking my boyfriend.

Wow.

I wasn’t out in high school. Now, I’m very, very out. I’m really happy about it. I don’t know how it will go over. For 10 years, I’ve spent my energy surrounding myself with like-minded folks for whom gayity isn’t an issue – under any circumstances. Tomorrow night, I’ll be partying in a room of a couple hundred of people, many of whom may really, truly hate gay people. I’ll be partying with my wonderful boyfriend on my arm. With these people.

It’s easy, living on the Westside of Los Angeles and working in social services, to forget that not everyone like gay people. I need to remember that there are some people, probably too many people, who truly hate us without provocation.

Sitting at home tonight, Friday, I’m waiting to pick my best friend of from the airport and it’s late. With little to do, I’m watching Real Time with Bill Maher. One of tonight’s guests is Barney Frank, the openly gay Democratic congressman from Massachusetts. Congressman Frank just reminded me how much we really are hated.

Taking the conversation to the subject of gay Republicans and the recent outing of GOP Senator Larry Craig (eww!), Barney Fag – he was once called that by the majority leader of the United States House of Representatives, a man named (get this) Dick Armey! – pointed out the foulness of the modern Republican Party. The modern GOP truly believes that my lifestyle should be illegal, that my relationship is a crime.

Hyperbole, you say? Not so fast. Remember, just a few years ago the Supreme Court was faced with this very question in the Lawrence vs. Texas decision. The state of Texas wanted to jail a gay couple for having an intimate relationship in the privacy of their own home. In Texas, their relationship was outlawed. They were criminals because of whom they loved. This was just a few years ago.

President Bush said he supported the Texas law and wanted it upheld. He was joined by most Republican leaders including prominent conservative voices like Justices Antonin Scalia and Clarence Thomas. They really believed that homosexuality was a crime. Their disappointment was palpable when a five-person majority on the court came down on the side of reason.

They hate us.

I hope not too much. I don’t want to get beat up at my high school reunion. That would be sad.

UPDATE: First of all, this is a clip of Barney Frank on Real Time with Bill Maher:


Second, the reunion was a blast and 100% positive. I'll write more about it later today if I time.