I was presently surprised today when I got my online edition of UConn's newspaper, the Daily Campus. The paper has historically gotten criticism for its lack of sensitivity to certain cultural issues, so when I saw that there was a pro-gay editorial, my eyebrows definitely went up. After reading it, I was pretty happy with what they wrote, but oddly enough, I really didn't think the issue was that big of a deal.So Wal-Mart recently put a children's book on its shelves titled, "Chased By An Elephant: The Gospel Truth About Today's Stampeding Sexuality." It's supposedly about how homosexuals can be cured...one of those pray away the gay tactics. I definitely don't agree with the purpose of the book. I agree with the editors of the Daily Campus that it's based off of ignorance and is insensitive to the queer community, especially the youth that have been highlighted in the media lately.
As much as I disagree with the contents and message of the book...(get ready to boo)...I don't really have a problem with WalMart selling it (boooooo...Vu, you're such an idiot). All right all right, WalMart is guilty of some pretty heinous behavior, including greedily closing down small businesses and using the sweat of underpaid foreigners to produce their cheap products. But I think this time, we're letting their reputation bias our judgment of the company's actions. Would it be great if they didn't sell it? Of course. But by selling, they're only giving the people access to information.
There have been no definitive studies that suggest curing homosexuality works. There have also been no definitive studies that suggest curing homosexuality doesn't work. So we can't say that this book is definitely wrong. It's an opinion and we all have a right to those. If I want to get my constitutional rights respected, then I can't oppress the rights of others to freedom of speech and freedom of the press. We all have a right to read or not read whatever we want. Parents who are tolerant won't buy these books for their kids and parents who are intolerant have probably been telling these stories long before there were books to illustrate them.
So I'd ask for WalMart to stop selling the books, but if they choose not to, I wouldn't be shocked or appalled. Nice work though Daily Campus. Good to see the UConn is getting a newspaper it can be proud of.
i randomly stumbled on ur blog and honestly idk where all these gay haters come from (im not one of them). Today was support stopping suicides of gays caused by bullying, by wearing purple. Over 3/4 of my school wore purple, only one person is openly gay. While my school has only 700 ppl in it, u can tell ur message is getting across. many of the teens in todays world dont have problems with homosexual ppl. i know i dont and neither do my friends. The most ppl judgmental against u are the older gerenation (from waht ive seen). Eventually ppl will get used to the idea of equal gay rights in ALL states (mine already allows gay marrige). While im not homosexual i believe that everyone deserves fair treatment. Im friends with gay ppl and they are some of my most loyal friends. Its not one sexuality againt the other ,its those who believe in equal rights and those who dont. I know that this is a completely random comment but i felt ppl need to know their voices can be heard by anyone, even if by accident. Good luck with everything XD
ReplyDeleteWow! Thank you so much for that comment. It is great to see that there are allies for high schoolers out there. I think things would be so much better if more teenagers grew up in supportive environments and if we all just learn to treat each other decently. Congrats on gay marriage in your state, we have it in mine too. The work continues tho. Did you know there a 1,138 federal rights that do not come with state marriages?
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