My side of the Gay Day Story 2008

[RickinNYC]

Hi gang, thought I should put this thread on the GLBT board to initiate open talks about Gay Days at the Disney parks. This is for all walks of life, whether gay, lesbian, bi, trans, AND heterosexual, and what folks can really expect during their travels should they do so during that time of year.

Not everyone is going to agree, but please keep things as respectful as possible. I'll admit I can get heated myself! But let's all do our best, be intelligent, be friendly, answer questions, address concerns, give assurances, and most of all, provide real life, accurate experiences if one has attended.

Hopefully, everyone can walk away from this thread with good, real information.

 

[DVC~OKW~96]

Gay Days. How can I adequately describe it? The atmosphere is what we go for. We love being in the park with so many openly gay members of our LGBT community.

We particularly get a huge kick out of reading the many t-shirts and end up with a favorite every year! One year it was "G-d Save The Queen" seen on an older man's red shirt.

The friendliness of the CMs is significantly noticeable. It's as though everyone is in a good mood and truly happy to have us all there. We are local AP holders so feel pretty comfortable in saying that only during Gay Days is the welcoming warmth so markedly noticeable. Other times of the year CMs are pleasant, of course but it's something special during Gay Days.

We love seeing the hand holding that is going on. It's a very inclusive feeling, knowing that we can feel safe enough to take one another's hand in public.

We don't wear red though. You'll forgive us? Red is too hot in June! We'll wear some other identifier (rainbow, whatever) but those red t-shirts are just too much heat absorbers for us. Each year I think we should get red tanks, but we haven't found any that work for us.

We've had wonderful conversations with people. Last year we were sitting on a bench in Norway, when a small group of men came out of the Stave. Some went off for a bit, so the others waited. One came over and sat between us on the bench and started a very lively conversation. His friends looked at him like he'd lost his mind for a minute until they put it together that we were lesbians! I'm sure at first glance they must have thought he was plunking himself down in between two librarians or something, eh ConcKahuna? LOL.

We like the excitement, the energy, the happiness, the t-shirts, but mostly we love the ability to be in a large group of "us" moving through life at the happiest place on earth.

 

[OKW Lover]

We're looking forward to going in June with our daughter, her partner and our 6 year-old grandson. We've got a great picture of the three of them at WDW, with Connor wearing his "I love my two Mom's" t-shirt.

 

[J'aime Paris]

Warning: I will be using stereotypes!!

I have a BIL who is gay. And I've met many of his friends. So I can honestyly summize that gay people are intelligent, hard-working, fun and snappy dressers! (who also practice good hygiene)

I have been stuck in line at WDW with people who have never met a stick of deodorant! They haven't washed their clothing in quite some time judging from the dirt and stains! And they seem completley oblivious to their own odor!

I ask you.......who is more offensive?????

(Go to WDW during Gay Days. Go during Winter. Go during hurricane season. Go as often as you can, whenever you can!!)

 

[SFBayDon]

Greetings All,

Having read the post and the first 13 pages to this post about the family at gay days in Florida I want to say to all that in a modified way this type of thing really does happen. I am choosing to post this on this board due to the fact the audience will keep this in the context it happened in It happened to me 10/05/2008 at California Adventure during Gay Days 2008

If you take out all of the drama in the OP it is what happened to me. Guest sees gay people, guest panics, guest leaves parks dragging kid out of Disney blaming Disney for allowing it to happen.

We were standing at the entrance of the Grisly River Run with some of my friends. We were wearing our red shirts and waiting for others to join us. As we were waiting and others joined us there was hugging, a few pecks on the cheek between men, but nothing inappropriate. As we were there waiting for our friends several children ran past us and into the ride. Shortly thereafter a woman (lets assume it was Mom) came up the path with a stroller with an infant in her arms. She was clearly uncomfortable by our presence. Several others joined us and departed for the ride. Since I did not want to walk the parks in wet shoes I chose to stand by the entrance/exit and wait for my friends.

At this point it is just me and Mom. She is standing away form me in the middle of the walkway as I am now on the only bench in the area. She gives me looks that I have not seen since a playground back in the day. Clearly she wanted to say something to me, but held it in. At this point my cell phone rang. In order to get a better signal I stood up and moved into the walkway. It took a few seconds for me to realize that because I stepped behind her she has spun around to keep an eye on me. She is clutching her child much tighter then before. Thinking I was just being way too critical of the situation I stepped to the right further to see if she would again adjust her position. Needless to say once I realized what she was doing I was shocked with disbelief. Not sure what she thought I would do, and I do not want to even image what was going on in her head.

Shortly her children came off the ride laughing and shouting to her “We are going to go again”. The kids clearly were having a great time and wanted to go back into line immediately. The mother spoke to her children in a tone only a Mother can when she is pissed and sad “We are leaving, I can’t believe they let these people in here”. The kids ask why they had to leave and the Mother grabbed one by the arm and drug her down the path towards the exit with the others following. As they got further down the path the kids were crying and trying to figure what they had done wrong to make them leave the park. They did not understand why they had to leave.

This was just 2 weeks ago!

I’m sure she will tell the story very differently to her friends and will embellish the story to make it more dramatic, but it did happen, and it was amazing that what appeared to be a Southern California local could be so intolerant and flustered. Now that I take a deep breath and think back to this incident I am glad that she left the park and I was the only one who had to deal with her hatred.

Thanks for giving me a safe place to tell my side of the issue to a group of open mined people. Wish us luck in November on defeating proposition 8. Hopefully it will be voted down.

Don

 

[DVC~OKW~96]

Is there never going to be an end to the hate filled intolerance of people?

 

[TuckandStuiesMom]

...hugs for you

 

[npmommie]

Stories like this make me so sad. Sad for all involved, and especially sad for the kids. Kids who were having a great time only to be interrupted by an adult teaching hatred. What did her kids learn that day?.... sad sad sad.

 

[mikelan6]

What a terrible thing for you to see. Hopefully, the kids will grow up to be smarter than the mom.

 

[SFBayDon]

Stories like this make me so sad. Sad for all involved, and especially sad for the kids. Kids who were having a great time only to be interrupted by an adult teaching hatred. What did her kids learn that day?.... sad sad sad.

I completely agree....You make a greeat point

 

[spacemermaid]

I am sorry that you had to deal with that, at the Happiest Place on Earth, no less!

 

[Disney_Villain]

As my DH would say, "Mickey wouldn't have approved of her behaviour".

I feel bad that you to had to endure such c**p in a Disney park (and in California too, of all places).

 

[jackskellingtonsgirl]

Don - I am sorry that happened to you!
It is sad that people are so hateful.

 

[rosiep]

I'm so sorry....

Please know that I raised my own children with love and acceptance..not only of themselves but for all those around them. I never, ever differientiated between a gay person and a straight person.

 

[lucigo]

How very un-Disneylike. I hope you didn't let her ruin your day!

 

[mickeyfan1]

I would rather be in the parks with "those people" than with her. OMG, how moronic can one person be? Sorry, but gay doesn't rub off on you, you can't catch it due to exposure, and try as I have, I can't seem to snag an invite to the meeting where I will be offered the chance, nay, brainwashed into becoming gay.

I am so appalled that this is still happening. I hope that people like her are in the minority, sadly, the minority is usually the loudest with their protests.

Her actions do not reflect my beliefs as a non gay person. I would be proud to walk with any gay man or woman in any public area. There is no call for behavior as hers and I am very sad that you had to witness it.

 

[SFBayDon]

Thanks everyone for the support,
Living in the Bay Area I forget that there is no much emotion on this topic. Until the recent no on 8 campaign in CA and the recent activity on these boards I was not reminded of the hated held by some. It makes me very proud to be, out, proud, and just living my life the best way I know how.
Don

 

[wallyb]

So now we're baby stealers?
What ta....

 

[ilovemickeymost]

I'm so sorry that you had to experience a person like that. Unfortunately that is the reality of our country. And as you said, living in a gay friendly area, you kinda forget that not all people accept homosexuality as a normaly lifestyle. My DH had to point that out to me when the topic of gay marriage became the hot topic in the media. I just assumed it was an unissue. In this day & age, I just figured everyone felt the way I did & would agree that all couples have the right to be legally joined as a couple & all that intails. I think its so funny that the military has don't ask, don't tell & the soldiers are very accepting of their gay comrades. They don't care, just do your job & save my hiney when we come under fire. Military men/women (as masculain as the come) know you can be a great soldier & do a fantastic job, no matter who you want to spend your life w/. And IMO, the only reason the military hasn't changed things is b/c it would cost them a fortune in family benefits. I hope you only had one encounter like this at Disney. I really think the problem could be solved if Disney did let people know ahead of time. So the people who aren't comfortable being around gay people could go on a different day. Just to let you know times ARE changing. DD's 14 yo friend just come out as bi to her parents. That would never have happend in my teens. I was so proud of her & so happy that she can now live her life true to herself. But, still scared at what she will encounter from the world.

 

[DVCajun]

Thanks everyone for the support,
Living in the Bay Area I forget that there is no much emotion on this topic. Until the recent no on 8 campaign in CA and the recent activity on these boards I was not reminded of the hated held by some. It makes me very proud to be, out, proud, and just living my life the best way I know how.
Don

What an unpleasant experience. I'm sorry.

I envy you the ability to literally forget that there are hateful, bigoted people out there -- in droves. I remember when that senator made her comments about homosexuals being a greater threat than terrorists (remember *that*???) -- Ellen made a joking remark like, "They *do* still exist!" Clearly, in her world, they don't. And how I envy that!! I wish I could say the same. Raleigh, NC isn't the worst place in the world to be a lesbian (with a black child, no less), but you'd never know it from my workplace. I work with this obnoxious 60 something man who listens to Rush 24 hours a day. Ok, perhaps not 24 hours a day. But he definitely does for the 8 he spends in proximity to me. And he doesn't wear headphones. In addition to that, he routinely will loudly pontificate about the various issues that Rush is discussing -- his latest comment was that we were going to have "a sambo" in office. This was a blatant attempt to discern exactly what he *could* say as I had already made it clear he couldn't say much of anything else about black people (as it was never positive and was always simply about their race). I went ballistic. When California passed the legislation about marriage, he affected a "cute" voice and said that in California you could marry just *any* old thing you wanted, your dog, a fish .... I mean, seriously?? -- even I can't believe such people exist, and I work with a couple of them every single day.

Ugh.

Sometimes I fear the world will never be a safe place.