To Face Hate
TRIGGER WARNING: Pedophilia and rape are discussed in this post.
There are things on social media and out in the world with which I don't agree. Many times things are just untrue or taken out of context and slanted to meet one agenda or another. Usually that agenda is to generate fear of or bad feelings toward a particular group of people.
There was a viral video recently in which a speaker stated that pedophilia should be classified as a sexual orientation, as her interpretation of certain research concludes that pedophiles are that way from birth and there is no "cure" for pedophilia. A segment of this video was added to a post stating something about the agenda of liberalism and "the LGBTQ sex freaks community."
No matter what I think about the content of the controversial TEDxTalk from which this segment was taken, I can't help but have issue with the assertion of the author of the social media post that pedophilia, or "minor attraction," is accepted and supported by the LGBTQ+ community as a legitimate and acceptable sexual orientation,. I have yet to meet an LGBTQ person of sound mind and morals who would think so. And should one have watched the entire talk, the speaker unequivocally stated that abusing a child is wrong. I point this out not to defend her conclusions, but to give more of the picture.
Pedophilia is nothing like homosexuality or bisexuality or pansexuality, which are sexual attraction to a person based on or regardless of gender, as pedophilia is by definition sexual attraction based on a person's prepubescent, pre-consent age. Acting upon sexual urges as a pedophile is not normal sexual behavior, it is rape.
One social media friend seemed shocked by what I posted in response to their sharing of this vitriol. They admitted they know next to nothing about LGBTQ+ people and that they couldn't argue with my statement that their gross generalization that the queer community is now advocating for the acceptance and support of pedophilia is a blatant lie. However, they seemed to stand by the two gender argument, the "fact" that transgender people should use restrooms associated with the sex they were assigned at birth, and all sorts of homophobic rhetoric.
And then I dropped a bombshell. Apparently this person hadn't been keeping up with my social media posts, because they somehow missed the fact that I am pansexual, have a transgender daughter, a cisgender daughter who is dating a lovely young woman, and have queer friends. When I shared those facts with them, along with the fact that I have much more knowledge of human sexuality and gender issues than they do, because I've taken an interest in such a thing and have done extensive reading of studies, scholarly articles, and personal stories, they seemed to be taken aback. Or it could have been the fact that I called them out about basically calling me, my friends, and my family members evil sex freaks.
Fear caused by ignorance and choosing to believe false information is no excuse for hate.
Love isn't evil. Consensual sex between two of-age human beings isn't evil. Hate is.
And so I will continue to advocate for myself, my children, my friends, and all who face hate. And I refuse to react to hate with hate. Instead, I will react with information, with sharing my story, with love. You see, I don't hate these friends and family members who are spreading hateful things via social media. I'm sad for them, that they have learned so much revulsion and loathing for people they know nothing about that it has blinded them to the fact that this collection of LGBTQ letters that they hate are fellow human beings...people just as worthy of love and acceptance as they are.
There are things on social media and out in the world with which I don't agree. Many times things are just untrue or taken out of context and slanted to meet one agenda or another. Usually that agenda is to generate fear of or bad feelings toward a particular group of people.
There was a viral video recently in which a speaker stated that pedophilia should be classified as a sexual orientation, as her interpretation of certain research concludes that pedophiles are that way from birth and there is no "cure" for pedophilia. A segment of this video was added to a post stating something about the agenda of liberalism and "the LGBTQ sex freaks community."
No matter what I think about the content of the controversial TEDxTalk from which this segment was taken, I can't help but have issue with the assertion of the author of the social media post that pedophilia, or "minor attraction," is accepted and supported by the LGBTQ+ community as a legitimate and acceptable sexual orientation,. I have yet to meet an LGBTQ person of sound mind and morals who would think so. And should one have watched the entire talk, the speaker unequivocally stated that abusing a child is wrong. I point this out not to defend her conclusions, but to give more of the picture.
Pedophilia is nothing like homosexuality or bisexuality or pansexuality, which are sexual attraction to a person based on or regardless of gender, as pedophilia is by definition sexual attraction based on a person's prepubescent, pre-consent age. Acting upon sexual urges as a pedophile is not normal sexual behavior, it is rape.
One social media friend seemed shocked by what I posted in response to their sharing of this vitriol. They admitted they know next to nothing about LGBTQ+ people and that they couldn't argue with my statement that their gross generalization that the queer community is now advocating for the acceptance and support of pedophilia is a blatant lie. However, they seemed to stand by the two gender argument, the "fact" that transgender people should use restrooms associated with the sex they were assigned at birth, and all sorts of homophobic rhetoric.
And then I dropped a bombshell. Apparently this person hadn't been keeping up with my social media posts, because they somehow missed the fact that I am pansexual, have a transgender daughter, a cisgender daughter who is dating a lovely young woman, and have queer friends. When I shared those facts with them, along with the fact that I have much more knowledge of human sexuality and gender issues than they do, because I've taken an interest in such a thing and have done extensive reading of studies, scholarly articles, and personal stories, they seemed to be taken aback. Or it could have been the fact that I called them out about basically calling me, my friends, and my family members evil sex freaks.
Fear caused by ignorance and choosing to believe false information is no excuse for hate.
Love isn't evil. Consensual sex between two of-age human beings isn't evil. Hate is.
And so I will continue to advocate for myself, my children, my friends, and all who face hate. And I refuse to react to hate with hate. Instead, I will react with information, with sharing my story, with love. You see, I don't hate these friends and family members who are spreading hateful things via social media. I'm sad for them, that they have learned so much revulsion and loathing for people they know nothing about that it has blinded them to the fact that this collection of LGBTQ letters that they hate are fellow human beings...people just as worthy of love and acceptance as they are.
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