It's A MAN!

So over the last few days we've found out that some high profile lesbian bloggers are actually men. Gay Girl in Damascus and Lezgetreal.com have both been exposed as a hoax. Today this ran in Pink News.


First I want to talk about the comments. Every now and then when there's a news worthy event the TV trucks roll down to the area and start interviewing the general public. There are some things that generally do not belong on TV. Just as there are some things that do not belong in Comments.



Certainly meant to be funny, but sadly, very not funny. Yes Jeanna, Lesbians can blog and millions of them do it every day. Unfortunately only the men that do it make the news. At least there is a public explanation on the Gay Girl in Damascus blog, I found nothing like that on the Lezgetreal site.

Now, on to the the actual incident.


I have mixed emotions about this. On one hand I can see how someone might "think" that the best way to support the LGBT community is to have their voice heard. And they may feel that the only way to be taken seriously is to be a member of that group. I can see the logic here. However, that logic is flawed.

I'm going to take this very personally for a moment. Lesbians in general, don't need the support of other lesbians to make themselves feel heard. Again, very generally, Lesbians have a sisterhood of sorts that bond them together and give them a community support structure. What is lacking in the lesbian community is the support of straight people. Just from a numbers prospective there are more straights than gays. That's a fact. We are a minority. We need the support of the majority in order to make social change. We need all the straight men out there to stop pretending to be lesbians and pick up their pens for equality. I loath the term, but for lack of a better word, Man UP!

If you believe in something, you should be able to say it with your real voice. If you agree with something you should be able to stand up and support that position. You should be able to articulate your point and provide a story, without basically writing fiction.

This is what they did. They did a disservice to the cause they were pretending to support as well as discrediting their own name.

I decided that I would take a moment and address any straight people that might be reading today. Here goes...

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Dear Straight Allies,

We love you. We want and need our straight allies. We love knowing that you support our families and want us to have the same rights that you have. I know you might want to do more for our cause and support us as much as you can. I would like to give you a few tips on how to do that.

1. VOTE - yes friends, just vote. We need to have LGBTQ Friendly leaders in office to be sure that everyone in our community is protected.
2. WRITE - Start a blog, write a letter to the government, send an email to your local paper, get the word out that you are a support. YOU, not a pen name or pseudonym.
3. Volunteer - Reach out to the LGBTQ community and find out what they need. We have elderly that need meals on wheels. We have disabled, we have children, we have all the same needs that the straight community has without the same support system in place. When our partner passes, in some places, we can't even be in the hospital room. LGBTQ Seniors cannot share rooms in nursing homes with their significant others.
4. Attend Pride functions - Every year at pride as we (LGBTQ People) walk into our pride events we are greeted with the bull horns and signs telling us we're sinners and we're going to hell. We walk into the face painting area with our kids and hear "God Hates Fags!". Why not come out and support us there.

There is so much that can be done for us, without pretending to be us. Here is a list of links that can be used to support the LGBTQ Community. This is a small list, there are lots of way to help. I welcome any questions or comments.

Thank you for your support!

A Lesbian

MEUSA - Support Marriage Equality World Wide
Support Marriage - Call to Support Marriage Equality in NY - Even if you don't live there let them know the World is watching.
PFLAG - Parents, Families and Friends of Gays and Lesbians
Twibbons - Show your support of the LGBTQ Community by adding a Twibbon to your Facebook Profile
HRC - Human Rights Campaign - HRC envisions an America where LGBT people are ensured their basic equal rights and can be open, honest and safe at home, at work and in their communities.
ACLU - The LGBT Project fights discrimination and moves public opinion through the courts, legislatures and public education across five issue areas: Relationships, Youth & Schools, Parenting, Gender Identity and Expression and Discrimination in Employment, Housing and other areas

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I hope that some day we can look back on all this and think, how silly to hold someones civil rights from them just because they love differently.





Namaste & Blessed Be

Sosanna
)O(

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