The Tragedy of the Baby-Gays

So this weekend is Gay Pride in San Francisco. When I asked a bunch of random people why we celebrate pride on this weekend I got looks of bewilderment. Always in my mind when an LGBT issue comes up I am reminded of a passage from Aumisted Maupins "Tales of the City": "Those who can not remember the past are doomed to repeat it". To answer the question for those of you that don't know it... June 28th 1969 the Stonewall riots began. Marking the first time in history where LGBT people said NO, we will not hide ourselves in darkness. NO, you will no longer shame us for our love. NO, we will never again be the love that dare not speak it's name. So on the last weekend of June, every year, New York and San Francisco have their pride celebrations to commemorate the birth of the Gay Rights Movement.

After the last two days of festivities, I can say with confidence that the necessity for a gay pride march has run it's course. Gay Pride started out being a statement. It said with voices united, this is who we are. We are your brothers and sisters, your mothers and fathers, your best friend and the stranger on the street. We are not something you need to fear. We are human.

With this yearly celebration the LGBT community slowly weaved itself into the daily life of America. Through the media our issues have been brought to national attention. Our rights have come leaps and bounds from where we started thirty eight years ago. We have positive gay role models in every aspect of our lives. From Politicians to Teachers, from Police Chiefs to Mayors and from Basketball stars to Actors. Even with a Fundamentalist Christian Gay-Hating government we have still persisted to fight every day for our cause. Well.... some of us have.

Those people I call the "Baby-Gays" are a constant reminder to me that our movement is dying out with the older generation. Those who had no choice but to fight to their dying breath for justice and equality. The Baby-gays have never known a world where they have had to fight for their love. The only hurdle they have ever had to overcome is coming out of the closet. For many of them, that is the only thing they think they owe to the LGBT community. It is not.

They owe their fighting spirit, their dedication and their very freedom to those that paved their way. They should not be allowed to drop the torch of the gay rights movement because it is inconvenient. Because it might get in the way of reality shows, cruising and shopping. We have lost millions of our brothers to a horrible disease and yet people still don't understand that you HAVE TO wear a condom. It is inconvenient. America has raised a generation of selfish, ignorant and useless gays

These gays cry havoc when a public injustice is done to our community. When Bush made Gay Marriage a national hate topic I could hear them all yelling to the heavens from my window. Then I heard them going back into the bars and accomplishing nothing. Todays generation of Gays spend their time looking for "the one", or shopping for what they think is "in" and "popular". They spend their time on things that in the long run will leave no mark on humanity. All the while they are damaging our community by becoming a generation of stereo-types.

Don't get me wrong, I know there are those out there that every day do something in some way to help our community. I am also not being hypocritical, I have been giving to my community since moving to San Francisco. I have been the CEO of two LGBT non-profit organizations and my current job is one in which I help people of every community in the city survive. I do this because it is fulfilling, but also because I don't look at our community as sex oriented. Sex is what differentiates us from the rest of humanity, but it is not all we are. With the exception of the Baby-Gays.


After witnessing this pride, the only thought that keeps going through my head is Pride is Dead. Pride no longer has a message, nor do we need the pride march to make sure that people know we are still here and fighting. Pride has become nothing more than a corporate sponsored party. While I appreciate that there are company's in America that support our movement, I think there are more important things we need as a community than beer and vodka. I would be just as happy if those company's just donated money to organizations that are doing the most good. Pride is not it.

Pride has become a drunken party for people to cruise each other, and straight people to come and watch the freaks. I thank the straight community for their support, but if you are going to come to a pride event, for Christ's sweet sake, at least be ok with Gay people. Don't hate them, dont mock them, and stop fighting them if they check you out. And as long as we are talking about fighting, Lesbian community... you have a lot to answer for. I was walking to the MUNI during the Pink Party last night and two gangs of Lesbians started beating the shit out of each other right in front of me. Literally, I had to push them away from me so I wouldn't get hit. And why were they fighting... oh this is good... because one girl checked out another girls girlfriend. Seriously? You expect the rest of the world to respect us when you act that way?

The Dyke March is a perfect example of the way the LGBT community is imploding in on itself. Voices United. Strength in Numbers. These were the things we used to unite our community. The Dyke March said great, thanks for having pride and all... but we are just going to do our own thing over here. And god forbid if anyone but a Dyke want to show support of our community by walking with them. I have been yelled at, cursed at, and threatened the two times I participated. Right on their website they state that no one is welcome in the march but Dykes. It is deplorable, the lesbian community has become a major dividing force in the LGBT community.

Well, this is starting to sound like a rant, so I will try to wrap it up. To the Baby-Gays, grow up. If you don't start paying attention, and soon, all the things you take for granted (being able to walk down the street holding hands, having what you do in your bedroom not be a federal crime, openly gay bars with windows you can see through), they will systematically be taken away from you till you have nothing left but your popular clothes and your reality shows without a gay character.

To the Lesbian community: Stop trying so desperately to separate yourself from the LGBT community. There is strength in unity, in one common goal, in one community standing united for equality. The harder you try to pull away... the more chaos you will inflict and the easier it will be for the people that don't understand or like us to destroy us.

To the rest of the LGBT community. Please don't let the Gay Rights Movement die. Stand up and do something. Give your time or money or whatever you have to give to an LGBT organization that is fighting for you.