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I would be jaw-on-the-floor shocked if you were banned for your comment, and I think the suggestion otherwise gives your ideas a "too hot for HN" cachet that th

I would be jaw-on-the-floor shocked if you were banned for your comment, and I think the suggestion otherwise gives your ideas a "too hot for HN" cachet that they haven't earned. There is no evil empire hunting down the renegade free-thinkers who dare to say that LGBT activism is disproportionately influential. If anything, that's the whole point. "We're here, we're queer" isn't just a catchy rhyme, it's a statement of purpose: the problem isn't just discrimination and violence, but marginalisation. If you can treat a person as an outlier and the group they represent as a rounding error, it's easy to justify mistreating them. I mean, there are always a few angry weirdos who show up at the town hall, right? Just ignore them and they'll go away. So why throw huge flamboyant parades? Why make flags and shirts and bumper stickers? Why force us to think about them? Well, I can probably name a bunch of groups that you aren't forced to think about, and are doing far worse because of it. That's activism. Being aware of something is a prerequisite to caring about it.

belorn 7y ago
Marginalisation is the big problem. An other community comes in mind that is currently only allowed to congregate in small designated reservation where the general public is warned of their presence. The size of that demographic is estimated to be bigger than the LGBT community and yet holds no political influence and I doubt there has been a single US presidential candidate in history that given them positive focus on the political agenda. Most seems happy to regard them as a few weirdos that can be kept out of sight and mind from the rest of society. LGBT activism and in particular the pride parade are good examples of how to break out of such public perception.
0815test 7y ago
> Well, I can probably name a bunch of groups that you aren't forced to think about Really? So why not name them in the first place? This whole idea that mistreatment of tiny, hidden, unrepresented minorities that aren't actively harming anyone else might somehow be "justified" goes against everything that this country was founded for.

belorn 7y ago

Marginalisation is the big problem. An other community comes in mind that is currently only allowed to congregate in small designated reservation where the general public is warned of their presence. The size of that demographic is estimated to be bigger than the LGBT community and yet holds no political influence and I doubt there has been a single US presidential candidate in history that given them positive focus on the political agenda. Most seems happy to regard them as a few weirdos that can be kept out of sight and mind from the rest of society. LGBT activism and in particular the pride parade are good examples of how to break out of such public perception.

0815test 7y ago

> Well, I can probably name a bunch of groups that you aren't forced to think about Really? So why not name them in the first place? This whole idea that mistreatment of tiny, hidden, unrepresented minorities that aren't actively harming anyone else might somehow be "justified" goes against everything that this country was founded for.