No One Else Cares, So Why Should I?

Gregory Mason

Cultural • May 27th, 15

The fight for LGBT rights in the present day reminds me of the Woman’s Movement of the late 1800’s and early 1900’s. When women were fighting for equal rights, it was more represented as white women fighting for equal rights with little inclusion of minority women in the same fight. Black, Hispanic/Latina, Asian, etc representation of women in the fight for equal rights was given little importance and it seems that history is repeating itself with the LGBT community and the fight for equality.

There is no discrimination when it comes to sexuality, gender, etc., so it is very frustrating to see so many media outlets continue to place a white face on the LGBT community when it comes to this fight for equal rights. There is little consideration of the Black, Hispanic/Latino, Asian, etc minorities that are also in the same fight and the question remains as to why that is?

There are LGBT racial and cultural minorities trying to gain exposure to fight to be heard just like our white counterparts, but why is it that our voices are not as loudly heard as others? This continued displacement of LGBT cultural and racial minorities will only continue the ignorance in understanding the LGBT community in minority races and cultures. People gain an understanding of different communities through exposure and there is an extreme lack of exposure in the mainstream public that needs to change.

As a black person who identifies as gay, I am all for fighting for equal rights, but it does not feel like it matters because when I look at the LGBT community in 2014 I still fail to see a equal representation of people that look like me and come from my background. Overall, the fight for equal rights is a fight for equal rights for everyone no matter race, culture, socioeconomic status, etc., but there needs to be more equality within the community as well so everyone can feel appreciated and respected as equals.

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