What is the biggest challenge that you have faced (or expect to face) for being Gay, Lesbian, Bi-, or Trans-?

Answer 1

For 15 years I put up with an uneducated, uncouth, crass homophobic woman who would not once cut me some slack at work. And, she was supposed to be in a support position but management would not do anything to get rid of her no matter what sort of problems she created in her head. At first, some people would follow along with her lead and it got worse but as time went on, I was so good at what I did, and she was so busy causing problem, after many moves for her all around the company, just about everyone would come to me and ask me how I put up with it. Things got better and the woman stewed for a few years, it was quite a spectacle. One day, the son of the owner married, and his bride came to work with the company. No big deal, until homophobia reared its ugly head once again. The original woman found an ally and all hell broke loose. It was juvenile and so over the top, the dam of hatred broke. Then, I got sick, I had cancer and surgery. When I went back after 4 months it was hell. I was blamed for things that would happen on days I wasn't even there. The bride in the meanwhile had a baby and brought it to work. No big deal, except she would go around with the kid in a papoose saying "Stay away from Juan, he is do this and that and bad things and blah blah blah." The original woman took that as power to sabotage mail, phone calls, faxes, and even time cards. Still, nothing was done. I was told to ignore it, the owner knew, I would be taken care of, even a VP of the company went to bat for me over it without my consent and lost his job. Eventually something fabricated was invented, the cops got involved and I was told to leave after I had been slapped, hit in the back of the head, had broken glass put in my lunch, supported everyone elses birthday with a contribution and never once had mine celebrated, and so much more, but I was important to the owner because I could be trusted with cash, jewels, gold, his infants, his pets, his household, his medicines, but eventually they got to him and he told me, "I have to let you go, I don't want to but I can't replace everybody when you are the problem." I said, "How can I be the problem when all I do is walk through the door?"

Answer 2

NY is referred to as "The Big Apple" seeing that lengthy in the past a popular folks hero (Johnny Appleseed) planted a unmarried seed within the center of the town. Then, in a unusual warp in area-time, a boy named Jack planted a seed he believed to be magical within the equal spot. In what remains to be viewed a marveling organic development, the 2 seeds fused in combination on a molecular degree. After an excellent rain, the seed hybrid grew into an apple 300ft tall and approximatively 330ft broad. The strangest factor being the absence of a tree. It turns out the apple was once utterly usual, besides it grew instantly from the bottom with its possess roots like a beanstalk of a few variety. For many years to return, men and women might discuss with the town and appear up on the not possible fruit and feel "that's a massive apple". After a even as men and women started relating to the town itself as "The Big Apple". But then, 1943 Oct eleventh, anything unusual occurred. As the town laid to leisure, the night time as soon as once more upon them, there was once a stunning flash of pink mild. The flash lasted for just about four-five seconds. No one is unique what triggered the flash, however as soon as it was once over the apple had conveniently disappeared. Not handiest had it vanished, the bottom it had grown from had closed as though it have been not ever there. Some say the apple had grown so massive it created a few variety of fruity supernova and collapsed in on itself in a black gap. Some say the extraterrestrial beings liable for the dying of the dinosaurs got here again and destroyed the apple as good. We might not ever understand precisely what occurred that night time, however something is for definite. That was once a massive-*** apple.

Answer 3

The biggest challenges I've had to face are the same as many others - coming out to my parents, friends, etc. My parents are "liberal," meaning they accept alternate sexualities in other people, but god forbid their own daughter might actually be bi. It's the hypocrisy that you face on a daily basis. Where it's socially acceptable for everyone else but you.

I've been alienated from friends who found the fact that I was attracted to women "disgusting" and "abnormal." I've lost a number of friends over the topic.

I face discrimination at work - not outright, but as soon as some coworkers find out that I'm dating a man AND a woman, they look at me like I've sprouted a second head. They don't say anything, but it's like I'm another species sometimes.

I don't get angry over it, but it makes me sad that people can be so unaccepting. As I stated in a previous answer, I'm active in the GLBTQ community here in Oregon, and the hostility I've received has opened a door to me - I now unofficially help counsel people with their own issues. Knowing what they're going through helps me connect with them.

Answer 4

All of my life I have been taught that homosexuality is a bad thing, a sin, even. A person who believes that he or she is gay should fake it, simply not life at all, or homosexuality will make your life difficult is simply a person who fails to understand the meaning of life and of love. When you fall in love with someone, it just happens, you don't ask for it, but when the government and your peers start harassing you for who you love, it is completely and utterly illogical.

Thus, the greatest challenge that I expect to face and have faced is combatting those that are close-minded and fail to accept diversity and homosexuality. I am sorry, but I cannot and will not ever have sex with a man. That's not they way my life was constructed, and its not the way I was made. I am gay, and I believe that I was born gay and the events of my life have shaped my identity. It is my wish that the world around me will accept me as me, and will not judge me on my romances.

Answer 5

Honestly? Of all the worthy challenges I have faced the one that I deal with on a regular basis is........
Holding my temper and not backhanding some bigoted SOB who really deserves it. I can't count the times I've heard someone make some sort of slur and I've had to walk away before I buried the nearest blunt object about 4 inches into their skull.

Answer 6

Getting the Civil Unions Bill in Illinois passed!

Yes, sadly there actually is a law prohibiting recognition of same-sex marriages in this state, but that law does NOT include Civil Unions, unlike many other states.

Our state Human Services Committee just passed a vote to allow this new bill out of committee and onto the State House floor!
Next month our state GLBT Civil rights group is organizing a Lobby Day to get our community and those who support us to go and actually speak to our state representitives face to face and explain why they need to support this bill and vote to pass it!

I think this will be my biggest challenge.

Before that, it was speaking to my state representatives about passing the bill to include GLBT language in our state constitutional amendment protecting employment and housing rights for our citizens! We passed that now we have a new fight!

Answer 7

I've been gang bashed simply for being bisexual and it wasn't only women who beat me up either. That was the worst incident. I also have been verbally abused at different times in my life also for being bisexual. I think the biggest challenge is to educate red necks and to try so hard to educate children of bigots so the cycle of abuse can end.

Answer 8

Coming home from long service leave to find that my partner had died. She had told me that she was feeling tired but to go and take lots of lovely photos. I had been unable to contact her and our neighbor told me she had found Gwenneth collapsed in our garden. She called an ambulance which took her to a hospital.
I later found Gwen was taken to a hospice. She had cancer. No one knew how to contact me and as the neighbor had given Gwen's family as a contact they were called. Their reply was to let them know when she was dead and they would "take care of things".
Yes, they had Gwen buried in their "CHURCH'S" cemetery under a stone reading UNKNOWN TO GOD.
My mind does not wish to go over those days again, confronting those hate filled people, wanting to kill one of them, slowly going mad.
Thank God for my brother and his family who found treatment for me. Forgiveness for the others but especially for me has helped me to recover but there is still some residual poison in my soul.
The recent anniversary has brought it up again and am writing this in the hope I can put it all aside once more.
Blessings to those who mourn and are heavy laden.
Rose P.

Answer 9

Being murdered for no rational reason. To step out my front door one day and never come back. It's happened many times and it will happen several more to innocent victims unless we do something. I don't want my mother to bury me. I want to bury her first, when she's lived a full life and it's her time to go.

Answer 10

even thou im heterosexual, im sometimes one male on a team of several woman on a phone call with our client and they are an office of mainly woman, so today i was the only male on a phone call with 11 women,

and i made a comment that i wanted to quote goodfellas but wouldnt cause thats something guys do,

and then some of the woman said they had seen it they quote the film too

i said rolling stone said its a guys movie,
they said dont believe everything you read in rolling stone,

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point is, im not gay, but in situations where i am a minority, i have to understand that i might have something in common with the majority, and try and not let stereotypes of them dominate how i interact, or myself become a stereotype just to make it easy for them to interact with me