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sophiaserpentiaI posted Friday about a new study out of Harvard indicating that "Verbal beatings hurt as much as sexual abuse".
We are a hair's breadth away from established evidence of the trauma and emotional damage of living in our culture of homophobia and transphobia. The case has already been made with regards to racism and sexism. Evidence has already been assembled on the harmful effects of social homophobia and transphobia. Now all we need is to have a causal link established clinically. I expect we will see that in the next decade, maybe five years tops.
Will it make a difference? Maybe not much of one. But it will be another step in the unraveling of the cloak of hatred cast over our society in order to make money and consolidate the state's monopoly on violence.
But this isn't a political game or a religious dispute, this is a visceral life or death matter for millions of gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgendered people who live with fear and anxiety and self-loathing brought about because of this. We will carry these scars forever, they limit our lives and our health and our economic solvency, and the best outcome we can hope for is that future generations won't have these same scars. It is a worthy tribute, but it shouldn't have to be a tribute at all.
Even so, having this evidence in hand could actually lead to one of the conservative Christians' worst nightmares becoming true -- courts and legislators agreeing that Christian instruction regarding the "sinfulness" of homosexuality is harmful or even a hate crime. This seems an extreme outcome and one that is certainly doubtful in the US, but it's believable in some parts of Europe and perhaps even Canada, where this possibility has already raised its head.
But, here's the thing. Those who have been sowing the seeds of homophobia have our blood on their hands. Even when directly confronted with the reality of the harm to which they are indirectly, if not directly, contributing, they will not stop or at least even stand beside us. They won't stop even though the harm they cause is ethically wrong. They won't stop even though Jesus taught compassion and unity over division and shunning. They won't stop even though moral absolutism is ethically wrong. And they won't even stop when they can see that their hatefulness is literally destroying the fabric of their own churches and communities.
If they won't stop, we ex-Christians and atheists will do it for them, and i guarantee the results of that will be much less kind to Christianity (and maybe even religion in general) than it would if conservative Christianity got its own house in order and stopped hurting people.
ETA. I meant for this entry to have a more personal element, some reflection on how these things affect me every day, the cumulative trauma of transphobia from my parents, from the church, from society at large. But it didn't come out. I've already written about it, anyway.
We are a hair's breadth away from established evidence of the trauma and emotional damage of living in our culture of homophobia and transphobia. The case has already been made with regards to racism and sexism. Evidence has already been assembled on the harmful effects of social homophobia and transphobia. Now all we need is to have a causal link established clinically. I expect we will see that in the next decade, maybe five years tops.
Will it make a difference? Maybe not much of one. But it will be another step in the unraveling of the cloak of hatred cast over our society in order to make money and consolidate the state's monopoly on violence.
But this isn't a political game or a religious dispute, this is a visceral life or death matter for millions of gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgendered people who live with fear and anxiety and self-loathing brought about because of this. We will carry these scars forever, they limit our lives and our health and our economic solvency, and the best outcome we can hope for is that future generations won't have these same scars. It is a worthy tribute, but it shouldn't have to be a tribute at all.
Even so, having this evidence in hand could actually lead to one of the conservative Christians' worst nightmares becoming true -- courts and legislators agreeing that Christian instruction regarding the "sinfulness" of homosexuality is harmful or even a hate crime. This seems an extreme outcome and one that is certainly doubtful in the US, but it's believable in some parts of Europe and perhaps even Canada, where this possibility has already raised its head.
But, here's the thing. Those who have been sowing the seeds of homophobia have our blood on their hands. Even when directly confronted with the reality of the harm to which they are indirectly, if not directly, contributing, they will not stop or at least even stand beside us. They won't stop even though the harm they cause is ethically wrong. They won't stop even though Jesus taught compassion and unity over division and shunning. They won't stop even though moral absolutism is ethically wrong. And they won't even stop when they can see that their hatefulness is literally destroying the fabric of their own churches and communities.
If they won't stop, we ex-Christians and atheists will do it for them, and i guarantee the results of that will be much less kind to Christianity (and maybe even religion in general) than it would if conservative Christianity got its own house in order and stopped hurting people.
ETA. I meant for this entry to have a more personal element, some reflection on how these things affect me every day, the cumulative trauma of transphobia from my parents, from the church, from society at large. But it didn't come out. I've already written about it, anyway.
