minicoopercraig
DIS Veteran
- Joined
- Oct 6, 2007
- Messages
- 571
Does anyone else in this community just feel like sitting down and writing this:
"Dear (insert presidental candidate's name here);
I am writing you to inform you of a severe injustice that is being performed day in and day out in this great country of ours.
No, I am not speaking of poverty, I am not speaking of homelessness, I am not speaking of the falling dollar, I am speaking of Inequality.
I do not have the same rights of the average white male in this country, I am not allowed to go to war, I am not allowed to share my life with someone I truly care about, I am not allowed to adopt a child to raise with my partner, I am not allowed to marry the person I love with all my being.
And yet, you don't seem to notice me. I wonder why that is? Most of the time, you spend your days saying you will fight for equality, fairness, the American way, I don't see that happening at all. Slowly, I am being forced to hide back into the closets, back under the bed, and back into the shadows of America. I could at one time walk down the street without being scared of having someone hurt me and not have to face the consequences for it.
I don't know if you've noticed, but I am being treated as though I am not a person. There are people in your government who are calling me worse then a terrorist, the cause of September 11th, and saying that to keep the sanctity of marriage alive I shouldn't be allowed to declare my love. The only thing I see wrong with this is that most of the people who are saying these things have damaged the sanctity of marrage already, don't the vows say: "Till death do us part"? Or is that just overlooked and rewritten to say: "Till I commit adultry with my secratary and we divorce"? I would say that most of the people in our beloved government have had more than one relationship in their lives, and most of them have been married more than once. So, how is letting me marry who I should want a damage to marriage when their second wife is talking to their third wife about the woman he's cheating on her with? I'm confused. I don't mean to say that all marriages end in divorce, but it certainly seems that way in Hollywood. How do two people who truly WANT to be together in matrimony for the rest of their lives become so ridiculed when most of the country only gets married because they want the benefits. Why does it matter who I love, why shouldn't I be allowed to have that person beside me when I need them: As next of kin on my medical records, as my beneficiary through my insurance, and why can't I lay next to that person in my eternal sleep? Why is this so scary to you? If we can't legalize it, then take those benefits away from marriage, isn't that a religious rite anyway? What happened to separation of church and state?
I also don't understand why you don't want me to go to war for the country. If a person is willing to put their life on the line to protect our freedoms, why shouldn't they be allowed. Does the government really thing that we're contagious? Or that we omit radiation? I don't understand. There are thousands upon thousands of soldiers in this country who were shamed, discredited, and discharged forcibly because of their orientation. What's wrong with this picture? They completed their training without incident, most of them fought overseas in this current conflict, and yet when someone discovers their secret (that they've kept inside of them all these years just to serve their patriotic duty) they are told they aren't worthy of doing what they've been doing and forced to leave the military without getting a single thank you or their recognition they deserve. I don't understand.
I thought this country had equal rights for all, not just who we choose and pick. If this country continues on the path it's taking towards me, I will soon be lower than a third class citizen. I thought the Pledge of Allegiance says: "With Liberty and Justice for All" not "Liberty and Justice for everyone except Homosexuals" because that's what it feels like to me. That's what it feels like for a lot of people. I am Gay, and I want to be treated as an equal, I don't want special rights, I don't want my own laws, I just want to be like everyone else I see walking down the street, unafraid to be who I am, and not forbidden to love who I want.
Thank you for taking the time to read this. I'll go back to the shadows now like you want us to.
(Your name here)"
"Dear (insert presidental candidate's name here);
I am writing you to inform you of a severe injustice that is being performed day in and day out in this great country of ours.
No, I am not speaking of poverty, I am not speaking of homelessness, I am not speaking of the falling dollar, I am speaking of Inequality.
I do not have the same rights of the average white male in this country, I am not allowed to go to war, I am not allowed to share my life with someone I truly care about, I am not allowed to adopt a child to raise with my partner, I am not allowed to marry the person I love with all my being.
And yet, you don't seem to notice me. I wonder why that is? Most of the time, you spend your days saying you will fight for equality, fairness, the American way, I don't see that happening at all. Slowly, I am being forced to hide back into the closets, back under the bed, and back into the shadows of America. I could at one time walk down the street without being scared of having someone hurt me and not have to face the consequences for it.
I don't know if you've noticed, but I am being treated as though I am not a person. There are people in your government who are calling me worse then a terrorist, the cause of September 11th, and saying that to keep the sanctity of marriage alive I shouldn't be allowed to declare my love. The only thing I see wrong with this is that most of the people who are saying these things have damaged the sanctity of marrage already, don't the vows say: "Till death do us part"? Or is that just overlooked and rewritten to say: "Till I commit adultry with my secratary and we divorce"? I would say that most of the people in our beloved government have had more than one relationship in their lives, and most of them have been married more than once. So, how is letting me marry who I should want a damage to marriage when their second wife is talking to their third wife about the woman he's cheating on her with? I'm confused. I don't mean to say that all marriages end in divorce, but it certainly seems that way in Hollywood. How do two people who truly WANT to be together in matrimony for the rest of their lives become so ridiculed when most of the country only gets married because they want the benefits. Why does it matter who I love, why shouldn't I be allowed to have that person beside me when I need them: As next of kin on my medical records, as my beneficiary through my insurance, and why can't I lay next to that person in my eternal sleep? Why is this so scary to you? If we can't legalize it, then take those benefits away from marriage, isn't that a religious rite anyway? What happened to separation of church and state?
I also don't understand why you don't want me to go to war for the country. If a person is willing to put their life on the line to protect our freedoms, why shouldn't they be allowed. Does the government really thing that we're contagious? Or that we omit radiation? I don't understand. There are thousands upon thousands of soldiers in this country who were shamed, discredited, and discharged forcibly because of their orientation. What's wrong with this picture? They completed their training without incident, most of them fought overseas in this current conflict, and yet when someone discovers their secret (that they've kept inside of them all these years just to serve their patriotic duty) they are told they aren't worthy of doing what they've been doing and forced to leave the military without getting a single thank you or their recognition they deserve. I don't understand.
I thought this country had equal rights for all, not just who we choose and pick. If this country continues on the path it's taking towards me, I will soon be lower than a third class citizen. I thought the Pledge of Allegiance says: "With Liberty and Justice for All" not "Liberty and Justice for everyone except Homosexuals" because that's what it feels like to me. That's what it feels like for a lot of people. I am Gay, and I want to be treated as an equal, I don't want special rights, I don't want my own laws, I just want to be like everyone else I see walking down the street, unafraid to be who I am, and not forbidden to love who I want.
Thank you for taking the time to read this. I'll go back to the shadows now like you want us to.
(Your name here)"
