DIVERSITY MAY BE DENIED, BUT IT IS STILL REAL

The only justification forliving is that all of us must revere one another

The newspaper headline a few weeks ago read “Survey finds 1 in 10 adults identifies as LGBTQ+”. This was the finding of a Gallup poll done recently. The Gallup posting on the internet from February of 2023 indicates 7.2% identify as LGBT. Of those identifying as LGBT in the recent poll, 13.4% identify as lesbian and 20% identify as gay. Those identifying as Transgender range between .5% and 1.6%. Whether the LGBT population is 7.6% or near 10%, that’s a sizeable chunk of America’s population. Obviously, all LGBT people will not share the same political views. But, surely most will agree that they have, or should have , the same political rights as anyone else – and that they deserve to be treated with dignity and respect.

But why have people who have identified with another sexual identity apart from the straight majority been regarded with such disdain in many parts of the world and even persecuted? Why are gays threatened with civil execution in some countries like Uganda? Why until recently was homosexuality a crime in the U.S. and England?

It appears that people who differ from the majority norm are regularly singled out for their difference, regardless of whether it is religious, cultural, racial or skin color. Could it be that a substantial part of the population are so insecure about their status in life that they must have others against whom they can feel superior and regard as inferior? As antidote, the words of Rodney King come to mind: “We are all in this together”.