Whoever they were, and whatever they thought, it can
certainly be said that there were enough of them: 200,000 according to the
organizers of the affair, and each and everyone one of them was out there
defending the family, since its most recent attack is something called “curriculo de género” and if the Puerto
Rican family doesn’t survive this onslaught from the government, well, it won’t
be because they didn’t try. There were loud speakers, whistles, vuvuzelas,
home-made placards, and some more slick affairs, the most arresting of which
was this:
Yes—it means what you think: No Books, Let’s not damage our
children.
Because it was all about children—children whose innocence
was going to be robbed from them, as you could have heard by going to YouTube
and listening to the video published by prporlafamilia.com.
Heartbreaking to hear the little voice lisping, “Mami, why are3 they taking
away my innocence?” Who could not be affected?
So 200,000 people came to my town to protest this outrage,
and shouldn’t I figure out what it is? But it was difficult, since here’s what the
secretary of the Department of Education has to say:
Enfatizó que el nuevo
currículo y la carta circular sobre perspectiva de género aún no están listas.
Asimismo, reiteró que no se comprarán libros porque “es un tema que se
incorporará de manera transversal en los ofrecimientos currículares de todos
los niveles escolares y se implementará de acuerdo con la edad y el nivel
escolar”.
Short
translation: the new curriculum and the letter announcing it isn’t ready yet,
nor have any books been bought. But that was a problem for the protesters, who
had this to show on their website:
Right—so
the book is called Nuestra Sexualidad,
and supposedly it has pictures that would make a marine blush. True, the book,
according to the Department of Education, was meant for the teachers only, and
was recalled months after having been distributed…but could anyone seriously
believe that lie? Of course not!
So
various leaders of various churches herded up the faithful, and they were sent
out to clamor for the innocence of their children. And then there was the
meeting with the governor, who gave up an hour and a half of his time; one of
the organizers of the event, a cardiologist named César Vázquez who is
spokesman for Puerto Rico Por la Familia, had neither heart nor stomach for the
meeting, and stormed out of the meeting after five minutes, and then announced
to the waiting press that the affair had been that most atrocious of things: una falta de respeto,
Well,
the governor
didn’t think it had been, and claimed that at the end of the meeting, the
other members of the groups organizing the march had asked the Gov to take
selfies with them, since degenerate and innocence-robbing or not, hey …he still
the governor!
The
ironic thing is that a number of my Facebook friends were all in support of the
affair, since they are evangelicals as well as parents. So I can tell you:
These are wonderful people, good people, people who would be appalled at any
injustice done from hatred or malice.
Which
makes it hard for me, since another Facebook friend had this to say:
Just sub out "education on gender and
sexuality" for "gay marriage" and "kids" for "gay
people"
Well,
yesterday was a hard day for me, since having 200,000 fundamentalist Christians
on my doorstep was daunting, and could the computer do any better? Of course
not, since I was absorbed reading about the guy in Denmark who killed two
people—apparently, according to The New York Times, he wasn’t really
radicalized, just pissed off, and isn’t that nice to know!—and then the
twenty Christians that ISIS beheaded, and then the 250 Jewish graves that got
desecrated in France. Oh, and the day was grey and rainy, which didn’t much help.
Right—the
first time I saw it, I found it chilling too, though it was years ago in a
Catholic church in a very good neighborhood. Still, just as there are some
images that you cannot use, there are certain gestures you cannot make. So half
of the Internet was publishing photos of German crowds gesticulating in a
similar fashion in the 1940’s, and the other half of the Internet was claiming
that only a pervert couldn’t see that they were raising their hands to GOD!
Well,
I suppose I brought it on myself—at least partially—since didn’t all of us gay
people press the buttons? After all, we were out there marching, raising hell,
going off to pour blood on the Reagan White House lawn, doing die-ins. So now
the other side, alarmed into activity, is streaming in the streets. Did I
expect anything less?
I
suppose not. But now I’m thinking that it’s time to move on, time for the next
big fight, time to declare that the fight for marriage equality has been won,
and that we, as gay people, need to look to what is and has always been more
important. And at the risk of sounding evangelical, that’s our…
…kids.
Yes,
since every one of those 200,000 people out there yesterday has kids, nephews,
nieces, grandchildren…and what is their reaction going to be when one of those
kids comes home and tells his mother / father / uncle or aunt that he or she is
gay? Why am I not hearing the sound of champagne bottles popping?
Which
is why, somehow, the news that this Chinese film has had more than one hundred
million views is particularly cheering. Here’s what David
Badash had to say:
"Homosexuality was decriminalized in China in 1997,
and in the early 2000's it was removed from the list of mental illnesses,"
THR (The Hollywood Reporter) writes. "But there is a deeply held Chinese
belief that children are required to marry and bear offspring to continue the
family line, which means homosexuality is still heavily stigmatized. Because of
this, the Chinese New Year family gathering can be a harrowing experience for
gays and lesbians."
Well,
we all came out, and it wasn’t easy, but it was worth it. Now we have a harder
job in front of us, since it’s too easy to dismiss 200,000 people as religious
crazies. Even if they were, what would it matter? The gay community has to
realize: Those 200,000 people are raising—some of them…
…our
kids.
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