DADT Repealed; We're Not Done Yet

Obama tells gay activists that he is committed to equality (CNN).

I didn't post or comment on the repeal of DADT on Tuesday this week, because while parts of the world celebrated as this U.S. soldier came out to his dad, other parts of the world mourned after a 14-year-old teen committed suicide last weekend. The teen had made a video that is part of the "It's Get Better" series, which features the message to gay teens that it will get better as they get older, so they have hope to hang in there. It didn't get better quick enough for Randy.

Or Matthew Shepard. Or Brandon Teena. It hasn't been quick enough for countless teens for whom the thought of going to school makes their insides do flip-flops and their palms sweaty and their brains empty. How can you go to school and concentrate on the material when you're looking at the clock counting down the minutes to your next beating?

We're all smart. Everyone last one of us. You can't question your sexuality for very long without getting into some serious existential philosophical arguments with yourself. For some of us, we never stop questioning. On occasion, I try to convince myself that no, I'm not really bisexual, I'm just kidding myself. And the latest cosplay thread on Fark pops up and I realize that I'm doomed to a lifetime of getting turned on by women.

It's not my choice. I can't help that I have the same sex drive as a man, including the object of that drive. And besides, who would choose this? Who would consciously choose to subject themselves to a lifetime of ridicule? How important, how monumental, how massive, must an issue be, that people are willing to sacrifice their livelihoods, their families, their friends, everything, just to be able to feel the freedom to be who they are inside? How sweet must that taste, to finally come out of that closet and breathe that air and see those lights and know that somewhere, out there, you belong.

I got really lucky. With few exceptions, my family is overwhelmingly supportive of who I am. But others aren't so lucky. We need to teach our children that it is not okay to bully someone. It is not okay for adults to bully someone either, so parents must hold themselves to a higher standard. Playground hijinks are one thing. But the constant, day-to-day terrorist threat of bullying that goes on in our schools, our media, our government, must stop. If we expect our children to do well in school, the first thing we have to do is give them safety and freedom. It gets better, but it is our responsibility to make sure that in the future, it doesn't have to.