Love that dare not speak its name

By Dr. Phoebe Godfrey

This October at Texas A&M International University a small step was taken in the direction of this country’s endless march of civil rights struggles. Few noticed and of those who did some applauded, while many more disapproved or no doubt soon will. Yet to those who had the ears to hear, the compassion to understand, and the hunger to be recognized, the liberating sound of hinges creaking was joyfully audible. These were not the types of creaking sounds meant to scare, associated with horror movies, although some may interpret them as such. These were cautious hinges whose sounds were made only because they have not been used on this campus, have not necessarily been used in the day-time beyond the low lighting of bars, have not perhaps been used outside of the confines of family, or even because they have not been used at all.
As a result, these were also brave hinges, which in shifting their positions revealed the changed faces of those you already know or could still get to know if you do not jump to harden your hearts, believing you are in danger. These complex, unique faces that incorporate all the shades and vagaries of humanity have come forth revealing just another aspect of who they are. Yet for reasons I will explore, this one aspect greatly stigmatizes them, casting a deep shadow on all they were before they were chosen for this particular door. Still, this has not deterred the first of them from stepping out of their closets asking, no, demanding, that they be accorded the same respect and rights "supposedly" given to all.
Thus, was born TAMIU’s first Gay/Straight Alliance, formed by gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgendered (L/G/B/T) students who will finally have a visible presence on campus. Although 33 years have passed since the historical Stonewall Rebellion marked the emergence of this country’s L/G/B/T movement, this effort on the part of TAMIU students speaks to the desires of all oppressed people for equal access to the mantra of "liberty, justice, and the pursuit of happiness." However, when it comes to L/G/B/T individuals the key words to add remain, ". . . with whom ever we choose."
So what is this oppression that has kept so many for so long in their closets living in fear and shame both that their desires might be discovered, and worse, what might befall them if such a discovery were made? We call it "homophobia" -- the fear, on the part of heterosexuals, of homosexuals. Yet what strikes me as ironic is that it is we L/G/B/T individuals who live in fear because of who we love and desire, not heterosexuals. It is we who have been and still are judged, rejected, scorned, ostracized, hurt, bashed, and at times even killed. I have never heard of L/G/B/T individuals killing heterosexuals just because they are heterosexual. It is always those in power who use their supposed fear of their victims as a justification for their oppressive actions. Anglos have for hundreds of years claimed to be afraid of anyone whose skin does not glow in the dark, even though it is often at their unprovoked hands that the blood of their "colored" brothers and sisters has been spilt. But they have never acted alone and nor do those who follow the tenets of homophobia. To behave in such barbaric ways alone would not go well with the position taken of not only acting from superior moral ground, but of actually being morally superior. It is for this reason that a higher authority is always summoned to support whatever violations are being committed to another human being’s rights by the ones who have the power to declare themselves without sin.
When it comes to expressions of homophobia the words "God," "sin," "abomination," and "hell" are never far from the speaker’s lips. For these words are all old friends and have been uttered to justify the enslavement and later lynching of Blacks, the burning of Jews and women accused of being witches, the genocide of Native Americans, and countless other actions all supposedly done with God on their "righteous" side. Oh, but I can hear the rebuttals that these examples have all constituted gross errors in the use of the Holy Scriptures -- attempts at making what was obviously wrong right by a manipulation of "truth." This, though, is not the case, opponents utter, when it comes to homosexuality, which is apparently so clearly identified in both the Old and New Testaments to be all that "good, God-fearing" people loath -- SIN. Now let us suppose for a moment that such claims are in fact "true" and homosexuality is seen by God to be a sin. Could loving and desiring another human being be equal with the sins of murder, rape, theft, etc.? Could a God that seems to uphold "love" above all things really be so illogical? And note that in the identification of sin I wrote "is seen by God." This means that however God understands homosexuality it should be up to Him / Her to judge -- not you, not anyone else, whose self-righteousness must also surely be an offense to the One who alone has claimed that right.
Now let us consider another possibility, that what is being read and interpreted from translations of the Old and New Testaments is not exactly what was originally written. That in ancient Greek or Hebrew there was no word for "homosexual" nor were lesbians ever mentioned. Furthermore, few know anything about the social and historical context in which these texts were written (divinely inspired or not), blinding them to the other existing religions against which the monotheism of the Jews was in sharp competition. If a group wants to promote their opinions or beliefs, the easiest way is to outlaw and stigmatize that which those around you believe and practice. This is basic human means of both solidifying ones identity and of justifying one’s attitudes towards and treatment of the other. This is not a holy act -- it is merely human, fearing at first that which is seen as "other." The problems begin when that initial fear is solidified into laws that project simplistic ideas of who is good and who is evil. The Jews in the time of the writing of the Torah were surrounded by cultures in which not only were many other gods and goddesses worshipped, but in whose cultures women played significant religious / spiritual roles. Yet Judaism was a religion of the patriarchs -- men who gave thanks every morning they were not born women. In fact, women were seen as unworthy of fully learning or teaching the Torah and their bodies were regularly seen as "unclean." Under such laws that designated men and women to distinctly different roles, in which the male role far exceeds the female role in religious importance, it is not surprising that any acts that threatened this rigid gender divide would be outlawed. Furthermore, that which is being interpreted as "homosexuality" had more to do with abusive unconsensual sexual practices, not sexual activity in a positive modality. In other words, those verses in the Old and New Testament that seemingly advance the march of "homophobia" should be approached with caution. Interpretation is the child of intention, meaning people have always gotten from the Bible that which they were looking for. If you want to find a justification for judging and hating others so you shall, as you shall find reasons for loving and accepting them.
I make these cursory points with the sole purpose of provoking those who contribute in even the slightest way to causing innocent "homos" some serious "phobia" by your "righteous" judgement to question what you think you know and how you think you know it. For one’s grasp of "the truth," of what "God says" and of who exactly is the "sinful" one, should never be seen as complete. This is especially true when there are now many hopeful young people in our midst who are looking for an open hand to greet them as a means of forming an alliance of mutual respect and solidarity. Being 33 years behind their fledgling L/G/B/T comrades, we can only hope that in this time more people have come to see that the mistakes made against the innocent in the name of "God" have never been justified and never will be. On that note, won’t you join our TAMIU students in standing up for their right to be proud of who they are, recognizing that of all the rights a human can have, surely the right to love whomever one desires and to the freedom to speak the name of that love is paramount. And so I ask you where is the fear in that? Only on our part.
(For more information on homosexuality and the Bible see www.religerioustolerance.org.)

(Dr. Phoebe Godfrey is a professor of Sociology at Texas A&M International University.)