Teach The Children Well 2
A Gay Opinion 5/03/03
By R. A. Melos
After the ignorant and homophobic remarks made by Sen. Rick Santorum (R-PA) last month during an Associate Press interview, and the rush to defend his ignorance by his fellow republicans including George W. Bush, I thought no level of sheer stupidity would again surprise me. With that thought I mind I logged on to AOL to discover another AP article, this one about a whites-only prom in the state of Georgia.
Now I suppose there are a plethora of jokes about the south that are already making the rounds on the comedy circuit. After all, who could resist making fun of a bunch of yokels exhibiting their ignorance of the advances of modern society? A local resident was quoted in the article saying her relatives in Philadelphia and New Jersey laugh when they read about Taylor County’s prom. Well, I’m not related to this lady, and I'm not laughing.
I find the level of ignorance appalling, and sad. It seems a small number of white juniors decided they wanted a separate whites-only prom, and they influenced the others to vote their way. I’m sure they are proud of themselves for the triumph of their ignorance becoming national news. While the Dixie Chicks may have stated their public embarrassment at coming from the same state as war-monger George W. Bush, I’m ashamed to acknowledge the level of ignorance that is bred in my own country would bring us back to a time of segregation.
I’ll just bet G.W. is proud since he wanted to bring the country back to a time when everything was so much better. Maybe these bigoted high school juniors were only following the examples set by their parents, or maybe they were following the wishes of a bigoted president. Either way, their actions have set back the lines of advancement for black Americans all the way across the board. It may seem funny that people could still be so ignorant as to segregate the races of white and black (I’m guessing there are no Asians living in Taylor County), but it frightens me.
Apparently racism is alive and well in America, and since this is so, it would seem foolish for the GLBT community to think there is any hope of true enlightenment in our lifetimes, or within the next several generations. Knowing this kind of bigotry exists does not set well with me. It’s one thing to have a bigoted politician spouting his homophobic blather and be praised for it, but it’s quite another matter when a group of ignorant high school students can create a microcosm of segregation in a country that prides itself on the current achievements of freeing the people of Iraq from oppression.
If freedom is to exist anywhere in the world, it must be global, and not limited. Freedom to segregate gives the power then to oppress and deny homosexuals rights as well. I’m sure the small-minded communities in Taylor County, Georgia are well versed in homophobia as well as racism. I know the world can’t be changed over night, although Osama Bin Laden did just that with the attacks of 9/11. Perhaps there is a less violent way of letting the truly ignorant students of Taylor County know what the effect of their actions has on the rest of the world?
Could it be possible to get the message through the dense heads of high school juniors that by forcing segregation back into existence in their community, they are breeding the seeds of bigotry that can grow and go forth into other communities and destroy freedoms for American citizens, thus reinforcing other forms of bigotry that can result in violent actions against blacks, Asians, Hispanics, gays, women, and every other group that has felt the hand of oppression? Maybe someone can teach these children tolerance and acceptance of that which differs from them?
Somehow I feel it is already too late. The seeds of ignorance were sown by past generations, and now this generation is reaping what was sown. This is a sad day in American history.