Tuesday, January 11, 2011

Haters want the "I Am Gay" Billboards to come down


Ignorance is truly bliss. A few fools think this billboard is wrong and has to come down. Here's more about this foolishness:


The Rev. Alfred Thompkins, of Calvary Tabernacle, said the “I am gay” billboard message only encourages troubled youth to embrace homosexuality.

“A thirteen-year-old looks at these billboards and says, ‘That must be it, I must be gay,’ ” he said. “That goes directly against God’s purpose. As a resident of Schenectady, a pastor who works with young people, with families, frankly I’m really bothered by the message these send.”

The billboards offer three messages, showing gay men with their families, in church and on a basketball court. Each message starts with the announcement “I am gay,” in large letters, and concludes with, “We have always been a part of this community.”

They were designed by In Our Own Voices, a gay advocacy group in Albany. The state Department of Health paid for the billboards as part of an effort to find a more effective way to reduce the HIV infection rate, which has disproportionately hit gay and bisexual black men. Last year, the Centers for Disease Control said the epidemic had reached such a level that new methods must be found to encourage men to use condoms.

But there is no overt mention of HIV on the billboards. In Our Own Voices is instead hoping that greater acceptance of homosexuality could lead men to make healthier choices.

Daycare provider Pamela Spicer told the City Council that the billboards were so vague they were worthless.
“These messages are a failure. I think the Department of Health needs their money back,” she said. “The intent is to instruct them not to spread HIV if they have it … That does not come across in the message.”
Instead, she said, the billboards allow “inappropriate sexual expression.”

She argued that the messages should be limited to adult business zones — mainly industrial areas at the outskirts of the city.

She told the council that her clients read the billboards as she drives them to events in the city. She offers daycare to a 2-year-old, 4-year-old and 8-year-old.
“When I’m driving them to the Schenectady Public Library and they say, ‘What does gay mean?’ how do I answer that question?” she said. “How do I expose them to such content?”
Oh please! Stop this stupid notion about "what do I tell the kids" or if "they say I'm gay, then I am". Those reasons are dumb and ignorant at best. The reality is these people are just plain silly.This billboard is not worthless or pointless. It sends a powerful message that: Black men are gay and happy, We can have families and We Exist! Yes, we exist!

Because you don't like it or can't handle it, is not my problem or the billboard's problem. It's yours. You Pamela, you Rev. Thompkins and you Councilman Joseph. Y'all need to get over it, because we exist and if you take away the billboard, we will still exist.

source

6 comments:

Prince Todd said...

I was gay long before those damn billboards. Girl please.
Poof.

BosGuy said...

It seems like anytime people raise awareness and portray gay as okay, you have detractors. It is simply a subject that doesn't sit well with them. My response, "Too f*cking bad".

Stan said...

All I had to do is read the first few words..."The Rev..." says it all.

Unknown said...

Why don't they spend their energy trying to "raise" their kids, and getting to know their kids... instead of fighting billboards.

Stan in NH said...

“When I’m driving them to the Schenectady Public Library and they say, ‘What does gay mean?’ how do I answer that question?” she said. “How do I expose them to such content?”
How do I answer that?
It's called parenting bitch! You should try it.
Or then again, you could answer it the way you do all the other difficult questions.
Babies come from storks, but only to married couples.
God is in Heaven, and I know because I just do.
You're not fat, you're just big boned.
You have to like sports because you are a boy.
Santa can come down the chimney even though we don't have one because he just can.

Anonymous said...

If gay people need something to sanctify there existence, it just proves that the condition should be re-classified as a psyche disorder, and why isn't there a billboard next to it with a heteronormative couple with children saying "Im heterosexual and I love it"

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Viktor is a small town southern boy living in Los Angeles. You can find him on Twitter, writing about pop culture, politics, and comics. He’s the creator of the graphic novel StrangeLore and currently getting back into screenwriting.