Liberal cabinet minister Seamus O’Regan is gay!OK I know this isn’t a profound revelation. It’s been common knowledge for quite some time and O’Regan hasn’t made a secret of it. Despite being a rather avid political watcher, I didn’t know O’Regan’s sexual orientation. I doubtless ran across references to it over the years but it never really stuck in my memory because you know what? It doesn’t matter.The only reason I suddenly noticed O’Regan’s orientation was that he gave a rant in parliament about how people like him had rights suppressed in his lifetime. I wondered, “What the hell is this privileged, whitebread man from Newfoundland going on about?” Then I realized he wasn’t straight.I am utterly indifferent to O’Regan’s sexual orientation just as I am with anybody else’s and it’s a great development. Things haven’t always been this way.Former NDP MP Svend Robinson was the first openly gay member to serve in Parliament when he came out in 1988. For most of his term, whenever Robinson was mentioned in news or commentary, his status as a gay MP was almost always mentioned. Not necessarily in a derogatory way, but it was considered an oddity. His sexual orientation defined who he was in the public eye for most of his time in office whether he liked it or not. At least, until he was convicted of stealing a ring and was thereafter remembered as a petty thief. Canada has evolved in the last few decades and for the better. Most of us don’t reference a gay MP or same-sex marriage anymore. It’s just an MP and it’s just marriage. This is where we need to be.This didn’t happen overnight. It took decades of effort from activists within and outside the LGBTQ community. The Pride movement was an integral part of what fostered the changes in societal attitudes toward LGTBTQ people. A girlfriend dragged me down to a Pride event in the late 1990s. I wasn't dragged because I was terrified of gay people but I was still awkward and squeamish on the issue as most of the people who grew up in the 1970s were. When I went to school, I would have been sent to detention for swearing in class but wouldn’t have gotten much more than a finger wagging if I had called a fellow student a fag. The word was in popular use. Spending a day around people from the LGBTQ community was good for me and helped me grow out of my intolerance. It still took years to grow up and shed my prejudices, but attending Pride events over the years helped. The term Pride is appropriate for the movement. LGBTQ people were constantly told they should be ashamed of who they are and that they should keep their sexuality hidden and suppressed. I can understand why they want to celebrate who they are loudly and without shame at events. Pride parades and gatherings allowed for that.Sexual orientation is protected by law and LGBTQ people now enjoy all the rights straight people do. More importantly, most people learned to set aside prejudices and accept people for who they are. Yes, there are still acts of intolerance and some hateful people out there, but it is a dwindling subset of society.This has left radical activists with a quandary. They have reached the goal line and now don't know what to do with themselves. They have chosen keep pushing the line farther down the field. They are angry, they thrive on protest, and they are running out of reasonable demands. That’s why they insist on becoming more militant at Pride events, and ironically exclusionary. People don’t want to take their kids to a parade where nude men simulate sexual acts as activists keep pushing the shock envelope. As the movement embraces more radical stances, they have begun eating their own. Edmonton canceled a Pride parade a couple years ago because Black Lives Matter activists got upset and Philadelphia had its Pride parade disrupted by the ridiculous “Queers for Palestine” movement. This week, Winnipeg's Pride parade was reportedly temporarily blocked by "Queers for Palestine" activists "in the traditions of Two-Spirit, queer and trans resistance." What the hell does that even mean? Are we really expected to embrace and respect groups this nutty?Pride events have become hyperpolitical and sense of community bonding is being lost. It isn’t enough to be tolerant or accepting anymore. Activists demand open displays of support for their cause. Businesses are shamed if they don’t have enough rainbow flag stickers on display and public figures are called out if they dare miss even one of the many, many Pride events that happen in every city now. It is reminiscent of the Seinfeld episode where Kramer wants to take part in an AIDS march but didn’t want to wear the ribbon. He was eventually chased by an angry mob for not literally wearing his allegiance to a cause.The Pride movement went from being a brave minority to acceptance by the majority, to being dominated by a fringe minority.There is always room for a society to evolve further and there will always be pockets of intolerance to battle. If the hill for Pride activists to die on has become the perceived right for elementary school children to change their gender pronouns, I think we can safely conclude the Pride movement has run its course.
Liberal cabinet minister Seamus O’Regan is gay!OK I know this isn’t a profound revelation. It’s been common knowledge for quite some time and O’Regan hasn’t made a secret of it. Despite being a rather avid political watcher, I didn’t know O’Regan’s sexual orientation. I doubtless ran across references to it over the years but it never really stuck in my memory because you know what? It doesn’t matter.The only reason I suddenly noticed O’Regan’s orientation was that he gave a rant in parliament about how people like him had rights suppressed in his lifetime. I wondered, “What the hell is this privileged, whitebread man from Newfoundland going on about?” Then I realized he wasn’t straight.I am utterly indifferent to O’Regan’s sexual orientation just as I am with anybody else’s and it’s a great development. Things haven’t always been this way.Former NDP MP Svend Robinson was the first openly gay member to serve in Parliament when he came out in 1988. For most of his term, whenever Robinson was mentioned in news or commentary, his status as a gay MP was almost always mentioned. Not necessarily in a derogatory way, but it was considered an oddity. His sexual orientation defined who he was in the public eye for most of his time in office whether he liked it or not. At least, until he was convicted of stealing a ring and was thereafter remembered as a petty thief. Canada has evolved in the last few decades and for the better. Most of us don’t reference a gay MP or same-sex marriage anymore. It’s just an MP and it’s just marriage. This is where we need to be.This didn’t happen overnight. It took decades of effort from activists within and outside the LGBTQ community. The Pride movement was an integral part of what fostered the changes in societal attitudes toward LGTBTQ people. A girlfriend dragged me down to a Pride event in the late 1990s. I wasn't dragged because I was terrified of gay people but I was still awkward and squeamish on the issue as most of the people who grew up in the 1970s were. When I went to school, I would have been sent to detention for swearing in class but wouldn’t have gotten much more than a finger wagging if I had called a fellow student a fag. The word was in popular use. Spending a day around people from the LGBTQ community was good for me and helped me grow out of my intolerance. It still took years to grow up and shed my prejudices, but attending Pride events over the years helped. The term Pride is appropriate for the movement. LGBTQ people were constantly told they should be ashamed of who they are and that they should keep their sexuality hidden and suppressed. I can understand why they want to celebrate who they are loudly and without shame at events. Pride parades and gatherings allowed for that.Sexual orientation is protected by law and LGBTQ people now enjoy all the rights straight people do. More importantly, most people learned to set aside prejudices and accept people for who they are. Yes, there are still acts of intolerance and some hateful people out there, but it is a dwindling subset of society.This has left radical activists with a quandary. They have reached the goal line and now don't know what to do with themselves. They have chosen keep pushing the line farther down the field. They are angry, they thrive on protest, and they are running out of reasonable demands. That’s why they insist on becoming more militant at Pride events, and ironically exclusionary. People don’t want to take their kids to a parade where nude men simulate sexual acts as activists keep pushing the shock envelope. As the movement embraces more radical stances, they have begun eating their own. Edmonton canceled a Pride parade a couple years ago because Black Lives Matter activists got upset and Philadelphia had its Pride parade disrupted by the ridiculous “Queers for Palestine” movement. This week, Winnipeg's Pride parade was reportedly temporarily blocked by "Queers for Palestine" activists "in the traditions of Two-Spirit, queer and trans resistance." What the hell does that even mean? Are we really expected to embrace and respect groups this nutty?Pride events have become hyperpolitical and sense of community bonding is being lost. It isn’t enough to be tolerant or accepting anymore. Activists demand open displays of support for their cause. Businesses are shamed if they don’t have enough rainbow flag stickers on display and public figures are called out if they dare miss even one of the many, many Pride events that happen in every city now. It is reminiscent of the Seinfeld episode where Kramer wants to take part in an AIDS march but didn’t want to wear the ribbon. He was eventually chased by an angry mob for not literally wearing his allegiance to a cause.The Pride movement went from being a brave minority to acceptance by the majority, to being dominated by a fringe minority.There is always room for a society to evolve further and there will always be pockets of intolerance to battle. If the hill for Pride activists to die on has become the perceived right for elementary school children to change their gender pronouns, I think we can safely conclude the Pride movement has run its course.
