Gay Republicans at Harvard...
I sympathize...
Jeffrey C. Aguero ’07-’06’s date was going great. He was hitting it off with a guy from Northeastern, a friend of a friend, over hot chocolate at a Starbucks in downtown Boston. After a while, the conversation turned political, and Aguero mentioned that he was a Republican.I get three types of e-mail from this blog. I get hate e-mail from gays who hate the fact that I am conservative, hate e-mail from conservatives who hate that I am gay, and nice e-mail from lots of gay conservatives.
“All of a sudden, the guy completely cooled off and started acting really weird and standoffish,” recalls Aguero. “After I finished my hot chocolate, we said ‘bye,’ shook hands, and that was that. He removed me from his Facebook friend list a week later. I never heard from him again.”
Both members of the gay community and Republicans—many of whom cannot comprehend how a member of their group could possibly belong to the other—often spurn people like Aguero. “When some people find out I’m gay and conservative,” Aguero says, “they act like I’m a mutant or something.”
While the Bisexual, Gay, Lesbian, Transgender, and Supporters Alliance (BGLTSA) and the Harvard Republican Club (HRC) profess to welcome students of all ideologies and sexual orientations, respectively, neither has proved itself to be a welcoming place for gay conservatives.
Conservative voices are met with hostility on the BGLTSA open e-mail list, according to both liberal and conservative members. The HRC, as evidenced by an internal conflict last year, has not found a position on gay marriage that satisfies to its entire membership. As a result, gay conservatives at Harvard, members of a super minority of “pink elephants,” seem to lack a home.
posted by GayandRight @ 7:01 PM
5 Comments:
I get that too.
I will leave a comment. I have no use of any gay people, i don;t believe this is normal. When i think on Adam and Eve i have never heard of a number 3 person
My gay friends think it's some kind of stunt, that I'm just saying I'm a Republican to get attention or generate controversy. One told me, during the election, that he was going "educate" me about politics, and how George W. Bush hates "our kind", whatever that might mean. He had no answer when I mentioned that Bush and Kerry had identical views on gay issues.
My experience of becoming a post 9/11 rightwing homo has led to a re-building of the closet for me. I live in the Castro in San Francisco. After a couple of years now, a few very close friends have been able to tolerate my changed views --not all: some have stopped calling-- but I keep this info in the closet. I have no doubt that in the middle of ultra liberal free thinking gayland, if I were to wear, say, a T shirt with some conservative image or message, I would be verbally and even physically assaulted on the street. I am saddened by this, but not surprised. One of the reasons I began to unhook myself from the leftliberal line is when I noticed that the Religious Right and the Secular Left began to look strangely alike.
Interesting post Fred. Although I'm not exactly certain how Jeff Aguero's issue would be substantially different if his date was a co-ed from Wellesley rather than a sophomore from Northeastern. I'm certain that, in either case, the moment Jeff mentioned that he voted for Bush he would have a lot of open space on his social calendar. Of course I'm on the outside looking in, so what do I know?
The problem that I think you (and Jeff) are dealing with though, is the issue of being a dissenting voice in the larger community. Are gays and lesbians all socially progressive, nay libertarian, in all aspects of their lives? Life experience would tend to indicate not. Is every gay male in Toronto a clone of Michael Leschner? Not from my experience, but Mike's out there making everyone (read the media) think otherwise.
Don't worry; you are most likely a pioneer, although you are probably not alone. Age, wisdom and experience will bring more compatriots out from behind the curtain.
I'll give you an idea to hang your hat on. Last night I was watching a rerun of the West Wing. The WH staff was interviewing a Republican attorney (Matt Perry, if that helps) for a job in the WH Counsel's office. Why was he applying? He was on the outs with the Republican leadership. He had been a supporter of campaign finance reform. Josh made a snarky comment, to which Matt responded, "It's a bit like being Democrat who's not in favour of abortion."
Case in point. In 1928 Al Smith delivered the Catholic vote to the Democratic Party. That vote stuck with the Dems through the New Deal, Korea, the civil rights years, Vietnam, George McGovern, and Ronald Reagan. In 2004, with a Catholic candidate for the Democrats (Kerry) more Catholics voted for Bush than voted for Kerry.
What happened? In my opinion, after a long slide (starting with Nixon in '72), a majority of Catholics finally decided that the Dems no longer spoke for their issues. Despite having a Catholic as the Democratic candidate, they were happy to vote for the other (Baptist) guy. Were they right? Who knows? But it was a seismic shift. Too many years talking about unrestricted abortion rights had finally caught up with the Dems.
It might be the same for you guys. You're the fellows that looked around in '72 and decided that something wasn't right with the status quo.
Don't mind Anonymous over there. He's probably nothing more than a Liberal in blackface. I'm glad to have you on the team Fred. We might not see eye to eye on every issue but we probably agree on more things than you do with Mike Leschner. As for Jeff Aguero, time heals all wounds. Republicans are not homophobic by nature (no more than Canadian Tories); they just want time to absorb the changes. I'll see you on the government side.
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