I am a homosexual. And I am so much more than a homosexual, so much more than just my sexual orientation. But the world sees me as a homosexual. And that lens colours everything else that I may be, at least in the eyes of the world.

True liberation for the gay person may lie not only in embracing his or her gay persona, but also in realising that they are more than just that part of their identity. That they are fully human, with the faculties, strengths and weaknesses that all other humans manifest. I don't have to be special because I am gay. I am special because I am what I am. I don't have to be burdened with more special consideration because I am a homosexual. Because my sexual orientation is other than heterosexual. I just have to be accepted for what I am, a human being who is homosexual. A part of my identity, not the entirety of my identity.

Yet the world will not see this. Most of the world will not see this. Even my friends who are gay will not see this. To my friends, being gay has become a badge of honour, and that I welcome. It is a badge of identity that they welcome. To my detractors, it is the devil's horns revealed in their glory. The essence of evil that they are fighting to exclude from their pristine world. It even affects those who may be neutral. Unconsciously, subconsciously; that I am of this sexual orientation, different from them.

Yet I am just that, a human being who is gay.

 

GayUganda