Politically Correct Oprah has 'Bias' Towards Gay Marriage
So a day after the Joy Behar show, in which feminists rant and rave
about Bart Stupak, Oprah has Ellen DeGeneres on with her new wife. Yes,
that's right: wife. Portia de Rossi -- who was born Mandy Lee Rogers in
1973 -- and Ellen were recently pronounced...wife and wife.
I know gay marriage is a hot topic, but it shouldn't be. We have far more fish to fry in this country. Did you know that just 2.9% of Americans
older than 18 identify as either lesbian, gay, or bisexual? Even if you
factor in the folks who are reluctant to admit their sexual
orientation, the figure still doesn't come close to way the media
represents it. The media force gay marriage down Americans' throats as
if there's some huge conspiracy against gay people in this country.
Personally,
gay marriage is like the issue of abortion. I have feelings about it,
but it's not something that gets me all riled up. I believe when it
comes to these matters, the people -- via the states -- must decide.
Still.
I couldn't help but be distracted by Oprah's program. I was actually
flipping channels after the end of the only show I do catch during the
day -- Barefoot Contessa on Food Network -- and stood there somewhat
mesmerized. I tried really hard to be non-judgmental. I tried really
hard to look at these two women -- one of whom is clearly a lesbian and
one of whom is clearly not (just as I predicted Ellen's former love,
Anne Heche, wasn't) -- like they were just another happily married
couple. After all, that's what the media tells Americans homosexuals
are: just like the rest of us.
They are not just like the rest of us.
Which
doesn't mean we shouldn't be tolerant of gay people -- and by that I
mean respectful. Quite frankly, homosexuality makes sense to me. To me,
it stands to reason that 100% of any population won't come out exactly
the same. It makes sense that there will always be people who get too
much testosterone or too much estrogen. But there's very little
concrete proof (that I'm aware of) about the whole nature/nurture issue
re homosexuality. I just happen to believe some people are born gay.
But
just because most people have a different reaction to watching Ellen
and Portia get married than they do watching a man and a woman get
married doesn't make them bigoted. You're just not going to see tears
in viewers' eyes as they watch a woman walk down the aisle looking
lovingly at...another woman. You're just not.
But that was
Oprah's reaction, of course -- which demonstrates a clear bias toward
gay marriage. Personally, I don't care what Oprah believes. But many
people do -- which has the effect of making some people feel as if
there's something wrong with them if they don't get that "Aw" feeling.
And that I do have a problem with.
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Obviously a billion things could and should be said to Suzanne, and many already have, but I'll stick to one thing. If you think Oprah shouldn't be able to approve of something you don't care for simply because other people do care what she thinks, you're ridiculous. Also, if people feel like there's something wrong with them because they don't get gushy about everything Oprah gets gushy about, those people put way too much stock in one chick's opinion. I'm a lesbian and think Ellen and Portia's wedding was beautiful, but I didn't tear up or anything, and I don't feel there's something wrong with me.
In 1967 the supreme court case Loving v. Virginia (appropriate name don't you think?) once and for all got rid of ridiculous laws saying whites and blacks couldn't marry. At that time blacks made up about 11% of the population but I think we can safely assume that the percentage that wanted to marry a white person was likely considerably smaller than that. Let's take an extremely generous number and say a total of say 3% of the population actually wanted to be part of an interracial marriage . I don't know about you but I'm glad that those people can now legally get married and the ignorant bigots didn't win out.
I'll agree with you on one point. Gay marriage shouldn't be such a big issue. The media shouldn't spend such an inordinate amount of time reporting on it. The legislature shouldn't spend so much time arguing about it. Gays shouldn't be spending so much time protesting and writing letters about it. There is one thing that we, as a nation, could do to save all this time so we could redirect our attention, time and energy on to bigger issues that affect a larger percentage of the population. Legalize gay marriage .
People are funny. If they're getting a raw deal they get all pissy about it. If they see that everyone else gets the same rights but they're getting screwed they get all uptight. People who are getting screwed out of their rights are going to fight until they've got the same rights as everyone else. The only way to stop them is to give them the equal rights that the constitution promises.
You're surprised that Oprah has a bias towards gay marriage? Of course she does! Everyone is allowed to have their own bias about it. You just aren't allowed to take your bias and make it a law against other people.
Personally I don't really get an aww moment when watching weddings of people I don't know. That doesn't mean those people shouldn't get married, it just means I don't have any emotional bond with them. It certainly doesn't mean we should pass a law saying they can't get married.
Oh, and BTW, if you think you can tell for sure whether someone is gay by looking at them on TV you need to try a little harder to be non-judgemental.
Marriage equality only impacts the Americans who are denied that constitutional rights.
Did you hear about what happened in Rhode Island. Last week the governor vetoed a bill that would have given gay and lesbian Americans the right to bury their dead partners.
Last year a Rhode Island citizen was told he could not claim the dead body of the man he had married in Connecticut. It took him months to cut through the red tape, and even after he finally was given his dead husband's body, the Rhode Island Crematorium company refused to cremate the body. Only Massachusetts would do this.
Just about one year later, the Rhode Island governor vetoed a law that would have made all that red tape disappear.
This is just one reason why marriage equality matters.
Here are 1049 other reasons
http://www.gao.gov/new.items /d04353r.pdf
Now if you were denied 1049 rights, and required to pay taxes to pay for other American to have rights they denied you, would you think that is important?
I think this article speaks a singular truth that no one is willing to concede.
The statement "I know gay marriage is a hot topic, but it shouldn't be" is absolutely true. Equating the issue of gay marriage with abortion wasn't a bad call, either.
To gay people, and to straight people who hate gay people, this hill might be the one you're willing to die on. Good for you, except you're doing what political elitists expect (and want) you to do.
Here in America, politicians realize that we are willing to kill each other over moral values, as opposed to over land, money , and/or power. The more the media harangues about gay marriage, abortion, etc., the less coverage there is about stuff that should matter to us, like where our taxes are going, or why the U.S. dollar has become such a colossal joke.
I don't think the article was meant to be anti-gay. Suzanne has a point when she says we have bigger things to worry about.
Does anyone really think that congress cares about the "don't ask, don't tell" policy of the military ? Only if it gets them re-elected. The first meeting that the President attends after every election is centered around getting re-elected. They talk about what issues to focus on and when. Why hasn't Obama repealed the "don't ask don't tell" policy yet as promised? I'm betting he'll get on it a few months before re-election comes up. Sure, he COULD do it now, but it wouldn't garner as much popularity.
"I think this article speaks a singular truth that no one is willing to concede."
Which is?
"Suzanne has a point when she says we have bigger things to worry about."
Then why does she worry about it? She obviously does when she writes a long article on the subject.
I'm not arguing that this article is remarkably well written. I said that she has a point, and that is, the gay debate is outdated and increasingly irrelevant.
Why are we debating over gay rights amongst ourselves so viciously? Why is everyone attacking the author of this article for having an opinion? Her opinion isn't dangerous, because it doesn't really hold any power. Instead of asking ourselves if gay people should have basic civil rights (over and over and over again when we all already know the answer) we should be asking ourselves what the hell Obama and Congress and the Senate are doing about it. Remember, Obama could repeal almost all of the anti-gay restrictions with the stroke of a pen if he wanted to.
But he doesn't want to. Not yet, anyway, because he is a good politician. And like all good politicians, his actions (or inaction) are calculated to gain as much power as possible. And the entertainment industry, as well as the rest of the media , might raise an eyebrow to that once in awhile.
I don't begrudge Oprah for supporting her friend publicly. However, the woman is worth $2.4 billion. In a land where that kind of money = national respect, she could easily put pressure on the Obama administration to make some promised changes. Instead, she acts like everything is just hunky-dory in the gay community in front of millions of viewers, which I have to say, is wholly underwhelming. And she's just the tip of the iceberg. If you read Newsweek, AP, the Washington Post, or watch any of the national news networks, the media continues to lambaste the religious right as the culprit for gay inequality, when nothing could be further from the truth. The military 's "don't ask don't tell policy" was created (and is currently being enforced) by the government , not religious zealots.
As far as I know, no church can deprive any couple from certain legal rights, such as tax deductions, or hospital visitation rights. However, the government can, so I guess I fail to see why gay inequality in a strictly legal sense is any religious person's fault. You could cite prop 8 , but then you could also blame the state of CA for amending their constitution in a ridiculously stupid way.
Like I said, the government is perfectly poised, and has PROMISED, to change the laws concerning gay rights. CAN they? Yes. WILL they? Maybe. Eventually. If it's in their best interest.
We are debating gay rights beause racist bigots like this woman want to take away their rights, and argues that we should.
What on earth does Obama have to do with anything? This was about this bigoted woman complaining that she disapproved of Opera's lack of racist bigotry on TV.
The DADT policy was created as a compromise because of religious zealots. But this is not about DADT either.
Suzanne is being attacked because of her hypocrisy, ignorance and bigotry. If opinions aren't dangerous, then opinions that are attacks aren't dangerous either.
Oprah can help gays by portraying them as perfectly normal people. Your understanding of the issue is sadly simplified and tabloid.
Some time in the 1950s, after watching African Americans talking about voting rights on the Ed Sullivan Show, Suzy Wanka wrote an angry article as a response. Here are some excerpts from her article:
#Start quote#
"I know black voting rights is a hot topic, but it shouldn't be. We have far more fish to fry in this country. Did you know that just 10% of Americans are either black or mixed race ? Even if you factor in the folks who are reluctant to admit their race, the figure still doesn't come close to way the media represents it. The media force black voting rights down Americans' throats as if there's some huge conspiracy against black people in this country.
...
I couldn't help but be distracted by the Ed Sullivan Show. I was actually flipping channels after the end of the only show I do catch during the day -- I Love Lucy -- and stood there somewhat mesmerized. I tried really hard to be non-judgemental. I tried really hard to look at these ni... black... African Americans - one of whom is clearly 100% black and one of whom is mixed-race (just as I predicted Malcolm X was quarter white) -- like they were people just like whites. After all, that's what the media tells Americans blacks are: just like the rest of us.
They are not just like the rest of us.
...
But just because most people have a different reaction to watching black people on TV than they do watching normal white folks doesn't make them bigoted.
...
But that was Sullivan's reaction of course -- which demonstrates a clear bias towards blacks. Personally, I don't care what Ed Sullivan believes. But many people do -- which has the effect of making some people feel as if there's something wrong with them if they don't consider blacks to be human beings."
#End quote#
As someone who grew up in a time period when there were not gay people on television , I am so grateful Oprah and others are bringing attention to our existence. When I was a teenager and realized I was gay, I thought I was the only one in the entire world. It was a difficult time to say the least.
Fortunately we live in a more open and loving country than even 10 years ago.
Like millions of other gay people in this country, I have a wonderful partner who I am making a life with. It is unfortunate that people like this author are grossed out by my relationship, but as long as my family has the same legal protections afforded to heterosexual families, I'm happy.
We still have a long way to go, but opinions like the one above are one the wrong side of history.
All families should be treated equally under the law -- and they soon will.
Thank you Oprah for your kind and open heart!
of this argument are missing the larger point. Why is government involved in anyone’s marriage ? Why should a taxpaying adult have to ask a bureaucracy permission (license) to marry? Abolish the government’s role in marriage period. If you feel the need to make your union legally binding, get a lawyer and write a contract.