The topic of homosexuality continues to fascinate the BU household. It is a matter which Barbadians continue to skirt but one which we as a country will have to grapple with sooner than we think. Yesterday as we did our routine scanning of the news, three stories caught our attention.
A young man who served with distinction in the US military but did so under the hypocritical policy of ‘Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell’ finally succumbed to his conscience to go public about his sexual orientation and has paid the ultimate price. He had to leave the military service compromising his financial security in the process – Read NPR Report.
The second news report highlighted the action of an anti-gay Church which has gained nationwide attention for protesting loudly at funerals of U.S. service members, denouncing homosexuality. The matter has given cause for concern in Kansas because of the anxiety being caused to grieving families. A funeral was always thought to be a time and place to extend reverence – Read CNN Report.
The third and final report resonated the most. Last month Tyler Clementi, a 22 year old young man committed suicide because his roommates at Rutgers University, Dharun Ravi, and friend Molly Wei betrayed his privacy by live-streaming Clementi in a sexual encounter with another male student without his knowledge. Eyewitnesses narrate how Clementi jumped off the George Washington Bridge, which connects New Jersey with upper Manhattan – Read CBS Report.
The three reports clearly identify the victims. Even a homophobe may concede that Clementi, Woods, the former military officer or grieving families in Kansas should not have to suffer such persecution.
BU has read possibly all the arguments for and against homosexuality. Do a search of BU archives using the word ‘homosexuality’ to read several blogs on the subject. How our societies adjust to integrating homosexuality with the traditional lifestyle continues to be a painful work in progress.
An interesting discussion point arising from the Clementi story is to question why a young homosexual male would commit suicide because having sex with his partner was made public. We can stretch the scenario, if the incident were heterosexual in nature would Clementi have felt the same societal pressure to take his own life? We think not! Obviously a sense of insecurity existed in the mind of Clementi. What makes this observation interesting is the fact the tragedy of Clementi’s suicide occurred in New Jersey, USA!
Barbados in our estimation is some years behind the USA regarding the issue of homosexuality. If a young homosexual in a liberal USA in the year 2010 would be driven to suicide because he was ‘outted’, draw your conclusions when we consider that Barbados is often labelled a God fearing and conservative society.
The blogmaster invites you to join the discussion.