I have been biting my tongue over something for the last 19 hours and I finally feel like I have to say something, if only to get it off my chest. This may be a bit ranty.
19 hours ago I read a horrible post by someone who has historical been very critical of the Lukola fandom. The post was having a right go at one of our lovely bloggers, saying how homophobic and bigoted they were for believing that Jake is gay.
Now, forgive me if I am too old to know what homophobic means to Gen Z, but my understanding is that it means you are phobic to people who are homosexual, be that either disgusted by them or just plain see homosexuality as wrong. Now, please also forgive me for thinking that if we are accepting that Jake might be gay, there is no way that means we are homophobic, we accept him for who we think he is. Not once have we ever done or said anything about him that makes us homophobic.
Neither do I believe we are bigoted. A bigoted person typically:
* Holds strong negative stereotypes about a group (such as people of a particular race, religion, nationality, gender, sexual orientation, disability, or other characteristic).
* Treats members of that group unfairly because of those beliefs.
* Is unwilling to question or change those beliefs, even when presented with evidence or personal experiences that contradict them.
By that definition, we have nothing against Jake for being probably gay, we are not treating him or talking about him unfairly because we believe he is gay. Consequently, we do not have to question or change our beliefs because we are not being unfair, holding negative stereotypes or treating him unfairly. We just think he is gay based on hundreds of little clues we have picked up on.
So, by my understanding (and I have a very analytical brain prone to critical thinking), we are neither homophobic or bigoted and we do not treat Jake any differently because of what we believe.
As an aside, my best friend from school is a gay man. He has been gay all his life but only came out when he was a grown adult. He also thinks Jake is gay. He has lived what Jake is likely living through, not being able to be open and honest about his sexuality to everyone. I believe that he, from the evidence we have seen, is more than adequately placed to make a judgement on Jake’s sexuality preference.
Don’t get me wrong, I do not particularly like Jake, but that is because I think he is a bit immature in the way he is handling being an actor, it has nothing to do with his sexual preference.
As for Nic, some people are angry that she is appearing to act as a beard for Jake, saying that’s not what LGBTQ+ activism is about, that she would not be welcomed at Pride anymore. Do you know what, that is 💩. Nic is being a brilliant ally. Look at what Chatty has to say about what an ally is:
In general, an LGBTQ+ ally is someone who:
* Supports the rights, dignity, and inclusion of LGBTQ+ people.
* Treats LGBTQ+ people with respect and as individuals.
* Speaks up against unfair treatment or discrimination when they can.
* Recognizes that they don’t have to be LGBTQ+ themselves to support the community.
* Is willing to listen and learn, understanding that they won’t know everything.
Nic is wholly supporting the rights, dignity and inclusion of LGBTQ+ people, if Jake wishes to hide his sexuality for whatever reason, then what she is doing is supporting him in that, she is helping him.
So, to all the anons and nasty bloggers who spout a whole load of inaccurate and offensive claims, go **** yourselves.
We will do us, you do you. Stay out of our lane because you are inaccurately complaining that we are exactly what YOU actually are.
