Gay Rights In Film and Politics

[Raiha]

[COLOR="DarkOrchid"][FONT="Times New Roman"]So while perusing through the usual headlines, I found articles about the release of Milk, Bruno, and Obama not extending the same health care benefits to gay and lesbian federal employees.

So in an effort to not prioritize at all, I have the following questions for all of you, who must solemnly swear to not go straight for the gay jokes.

[b]Milk:[/b] Do you think this movie was helpful or harmful for raising awareness of the gay rights movement of San Francisco in the 70s? Over the past couple of days I've found articles by gay and lesbian writers stating that the movie was totally whitewashed and weakly put out as a terrible portrayal of Harvey Milk's last few years of life. Others are claiming that it's the best thing to happen to the gay rights movement since... ...Obama?

[b]Bruno:[/b] Is this going to be funny? Or is it going to do more harm than good? As a gay/lesbian/transgendered are you offended by this film? As a straight person does this movie make you more homophobic or less homophobic? Again, I've read articles with mixed reviews, although strangely the right wing thinks this only reinforces gay stereotypes and is as anti-gay as Borat was anti-Semetic.

[b]Obama And Federal LGBT employees:[/b] [URL="http://apnews.myway.com/article/20090617/D98SM6BO0.html"]Informative Article[/URL]

[quote]"When a president tells you he's going to be different, you believe him," said John Aravosis, a Washington-based gay activist. "It's not that he didn't follow through on his promises, he stabbed us in the back."[/quote]

Do you agree? Do you think this activist is a fool for believing Obama was going to give us more of the same? Does this make Obama just another political hack?[/FONT][/COLOR]

[Vicky]

[size=1]Oh god. On the Bruno movie note, I'm keep head desking every time I hear Cohen mentioned as being controversial or offensive. I was watching the news that was something about him today, probably the same issue because 'homosexual' was mentioned a lot by the newsreader.

I don't think Sacha is offensive. I don't think it reinforces the stereotype. I think it's going to be funny because anyone who doesn't sit there and think 'this [i]cannot[/i] be true' has half a brain, and that's just their own problem, ha. I love people who like to step over the line and after Bruno no one can say to me 'oh, you don't know how it feels to be offended by Borat!' when I admitted I liked that movie.

But the real reason I actually posted here was to point out...

[img]http://ak.imgfarm.com/images/ap/Obama_Financial_Overhual.sff_DCPM109_20090616125722.jpg[/img]

...that I wonder what Obama has on his iPod.[/size]

[Sabrina]

[FONT="Tahoma"]Considering the opposition some people have against [I]any[/I] form of rights for gays, I think the last part of the article really says it all.[quote][FONT="Arial"]"[B]This is a first step,[/B]" said Berry, who acknowledged that some of the benefits being put into place by the presidential memorandum already exist at some agencies. "[B]Not a [U]final[/U] step.[/B]"[/FONT][/quote]Some moves require Congress, like the article states so to expect a single man to be able to change that all by himself, president or not, is unrealistic. His term is far from over so if he does nothing else, then I'd say they have a right to feel like he didn't follow through, but it sounds like they're griping because the start wasn't as big of a change as they would have liked to see.[/FONT]

[Darren]

No comment on Bruno

Milk: Of course it got the message out even if the movie didn't portray his life properly. To a straight audience, (And I know, it's hard to believe straight people watch movies about gay men. But man, I swear they'll watch anything that's academy award nominated. At least my family does) this movie was very informative and eye-opening

In response to the quote: When a president promises something, it's actually best to believe that he won't do it. That way, you don't get your hopes up and you're really excited if he does come through on the promise.

I found a website not too long ago that has a list of all of Obama's promises that he hasn't come through/changed his opinion on since being in office. It's quite humorous actually.

[Mr. Maul]

[FONT=Verdana][SIZE=1][COLOR=DimGray][URL="http://binside.typepad.com/binside_tv/2008/09/borat-star-sach.html"]This[/URL] alone is reason enough to see [B]Bruno[/B].

Funny supersedes orientation.














[/COLOR][/SIZE][/FONT]

[Gavin]

[SIZE="1"]I would honestly be surprised is people weren't offended in some capacity by Cohen's flicks, I mean that's basically his thing with movies. Lord knows Borat was awesome to see the reactions of people who didn't realise it was all a big joke.

Regarding Obama and the rights of lesbian/gay Federal employees I agree with Sabrina, things like this take time. It's unreasonable to expect he could set everything up by himself in just the first few months of his term as President, especially given the economic crisis that's developed.[/SIZE]

[Aaryanna]

[FONT="Tahoma"][COLOR="DarkGreen"]I haven't watched either film, but as for the sentiments towards Obama... lol Anyone who thinks a President can instantly change things is kind of dumb. Something like that isn't so easily obtained since so many are against it, citing how it will ruin marriage and so forth if gays have equal rights.

Pffffft. I think they just use that as an excuse so employers and the government don't have to pay for those rights. Why pay so someone can have insurance if you can find some dumb way to exclude them?

Anyway, I see it as something that they're jumping on saying he's failed when he isn't even done yet. Sure he might do nothing else, but they don't know if that will be the case or not. It's too soon to tell.[/COLOR][/FONT]

[Allamorph]

[quote name='Aaryanna][FONT="Tahoma"][COLOR="DarkGreen"]Anyone who thinks a President can instantly change things is kind of dumb.[/COLOR'][/FONT][/quote]
[FONT=Arial]Tell that to the media. They go on about it all the time.

(quote chosen for convenience, not to pick on any one person)

I find it interesting how now we're all reasonable people. As opposed to earlier in the decade, when people were all but screaming for the troops to come home NOW and the war to be over NOW.

And now we're all for waiting for gays and lesbians to get their comeuppance. (Take that how you will. > >)

Make no mistake, guys, I'm not bitter or trying to be self-righteous or anything. I'm just amused that we're all acting like we just figured out how the system works. It's like we're all working from perfectly rationalised double standards. I mean, heck, I have no problem waiting for stuff like this to go through. I haven't had a problem for years. And I'm trying not to pass any sort of judgment until at least the last bit of 2010.

In the meantime, I'm going to try and help shape my city government, see if we can get that working first. Then we'll move on to the state.[/FONT]

[Darren]

I think the reason for that Allamorph is because people knew that the war was wrong. There was a lot of support for the war until we invaded Iraq. That's when people really got critical of Bush

But the debate on gay rights has been around for quite some time, so it's not like anybody really expects Obama to be able to accomplish something in a few months.

As for me: I don't think much will change with Obama in office. At least not with his recently published views on DOMA, but that's just me. Really, I don't even care since I don't plan on getting married anyway.

[Nony]

As far as expecting anything, whether gay rights or not, to get done, here's my li'l contribution on the matter.

Consider the fact that it takes (my) college's student government a month just to approve a club's field trip. That's just one school. Now try to imagine how long it takes when you add in a controversial issue as well as a MUCH bigger organization, and there ya go.

[Rachmaninoff]

I'd be more concerned if the President could change something that easily. You'd see the never ending roller coaster of things being totally changed with each election. Sure they do that for some things, but for the most part, it's expected that things take time to be enacted.

[Nathan]

[FONT="Arial"][quote name='Rachmaninoff']I'd be more concerned if the President could change something that easily. [/quote]Same here. There is quite a bit of opposition to granting the same rights so I don't expect it to happen quickly either. It would be nice to see more, but realistically, I know it's not going to be that easy to do. [/FONT]

[HopscotchEyelid]

I don't like any government or politics, but I do have this to say, it would take as long to give - homosexuals, male or female, the same rights as it did to give it to the African Americans. It's because one of the reasons people are against it is because of an overly used book. The Holy Bible. I think one of the main enemies is the ones who let religion hold so much power over society.

It was the same thing with blacks because they were "Dark." I just hope when it does happen, the equal treatment, we are at last mature enough to not go to civil war over it. Understand that all wars are civil, because we all live on earth.

Humans wont ever evolve to be greater if we keep needing some authority to keep us safe and need society as a way of living. We should do things for the love of life and joy of doing it, not so we can make money and live an ultra extended life. Because when you think about it, Life= go to school (sucks), get a job just to survive (sucks), get old (really sucks), die (sucks for people that love you, don't know what happens). Without good times we would not have any reason to live.

So why is it that we are depriving people of their rights (which can ultimately cause chaos to happen and causes people pain)? Or more so, the authorities we think we need, are doing so.

[Raiha]

[COLOR="DarkOrchid"][FONT="Times New Roman"]It was the same holy bible that motivated a lot of Christians to become abolitionists to work against the slave system. So before you decide to uphold the bible as a symbol for all that's wrong with the world, remember that religion in the hands of man and subject to man's interpretation can be twisted any number of ways depending on who is speaking.

Which is why you have Christians who are for gay rights and Christians who aren't.

And why you have Muslims who blow up buildings and kill protesters and Muslims who don't.

[/FONT][/COLOR]

[chibi-master]

Ugh...why is this even an ISSUE?! Why do gays not already have the rights straight people do?! The way I see it, this shouldn't even have to BE a problem. That anyone even has to DO anything about this sickens me... (sorry for the rant, I just finished watching a documentary on the abuse and prejudice gays in the U.S. face)

[HopscotchEyelid]

[quote name='Raiha'][COLOR=DarkOrchid][FONT=Times New Roman]It was the same holy bible that motivated a lot of Christians to become abolitionists to work against the slave system. So before you decide to uphold the bible as a symbol for all that's wrong with the world, remember that religion in the hands of man and subject to man's interpretation can be twisted any number of ways depending on who is speaking.

Which is why you have Christians who are for gay rights and Christians who aren't.

And why you have Muslims who blow up buildings and kill protesters and Muslims who don't.

[/FONT][/COLOR][/quote]

Oh boy. I think I've been misunderstood. It's probably my fault for not saying this: I'm not actually blaming religion itself, I'm saying that it's dangerous to let it have so much power for that thing you stated in your post, it's all bout interpretation. Some people become radical about it, some people become radical about hating it. But there are still good people who are civil about thier differences and beliefs.

You said it could be twisted by anybody who interprets it. That could also mean that the content of the book was twisted to fit something someone who wrote in it wanted to be true. Again, I'm not saying that for sure, I'm just saying by letting such a controversial thing be a (the) major driving force in society, we open the door for people that want abuse that power and use it for their advantage. If nobody falls for it society is okay, but what about the people that are afraid to be natural in human nature because they were born into an extremely religious family, the kind that wont even let their kids listen to rock music or go to school dances? Those families do exist but I wasn't saying all religious families are like that.

Alright, sorry about that, I just had to clear that up. Oh by the way, I was not angry there if that's how I was coming off. I'm not always good with words.

Back on subject though, I think we (or should I say they, the authorities) should just give them equal rights. It is that easy. What are they solving by not, their only creating a problem in a place where they are supposed to help people. It's this kind of foolishness that causes bad things to happen.

[quote name='chibi-master']Ugh...why is this even an ISSUE?! Why do gays not already have the rights straight people do?! The way I see it, this shouldn't even have to BE a problem. That anyone even has to DO anything about this sickens me... (sorry for the rant, I just finished watching a documentary on the abuse and prejudice gays in the U.S. face)[/quote]
I agree completely. As a country, we still haven't overcome prejudice of any kind, it's very sickening. I heard this a lot... "the black president Barack Obama.." I've never heard this... "the white president, George Bush..." it's always just been "the president George Bush..." Same thing happens if there is a homosexual, you the "the gay this guy/this girl" If we keep that up we are really a sad bunch.

[chibi-master]

[quote name='HopscotchEyelid']I agree completely. As a country, we still haven't overcome prejudice of any kind, it's very sickening. I heard this a lot... "the black president Barack Obama.." I've never heard this... "the white president, George Bush..." it's always just been "the president George Bush..." Same thing happens if there is a homosexual, you the "the gay this guy/this girl" If we keep that up we are really a sad bunch.[/QUOTE]

Agreed. And Obama isn't even BLACK. He's BI-RACIAL. [/OFF TOPIC SPAM]

You know, while my class was watching videos on the Civil Rights movement and saw what was happening to the protesters- even white ones- we were all horrofied. Almost everyone is. But the EXACT SAME THINGS are happening to gays and their supporters. WTF, people?!

[Aaryanna_Mom]

No comment on the movies, but as for the other. I'm surprised that the groups were under the impression that someone could just sweep in and instantly change the laws to include rights and benefits. It's no where near that simple. I can understand that they're disappointed, but they're also being completely unrealistic in their expectations.

[Vicky]

[quote name='chibi-master']Ugh...why is this even an ISSUE?! Why do gays not already have the rights straight people do?! The way I see it, this shouldn't even have to BE a problem. That anyone even has to DO anything about this sickens me... (sorry for the rant, I just finished watching a documentary on the abuse and prejudice gays in the U.S. face)[/QUOTE]

[size=1]Because then people who have to do some [i]damn hard work[/i] to find something else to be prejudice against.[/size]