Category Archives: Children
So…Gay or not gay?
“Do you think Sam will grow up to be gay?”
I hear this question all the time, from family, friends, and strangers who learn about Sam’s proclivity for pink. It’s a question that reflects the asker’s assumption that boys who like pink must be gay.
On the minor perils of not hiding
A while back, I was Facebook-friended by someone with whom I’d gone to elementary school, a woman I hadn’t seen in 15 years. In that same week, I was friended by another schoolmate, a man I hadn’t seen in 25 years. I’ll call these two people, who are not facebook friends with each other, Leia and Mork.
“Get out! You’re a girl!”
The shout rang out from the men’s room in the Chicago airport, and I heard it all the way in the women’s room next door. My husband had taken our son, Sam, who is seven, to the bathroom between flights. It was not the first time I’d heard such a shout. I ran out with my daughter to find out what was happening to Sam.
My pink boy is not alone
My son Sam loves the color pink.
He wore a dress to preschool, spent years pretending he was a princess, and now, as a third-grader, he has long flowing hair and a fondness for all things sparkly. He is a pink boy. Like a tomboy, only different.
What’s the role of straight people?
I’ve heard people say that the job of supportive straight people (heterosexuals) is to help gay and transgender people, that the work we do for equality is to benefit them. Similarly, I’ve heard supportive straight folks say that they feel uncertain how to act, because they’re not sure they have permission to speak.