International Day Against Homophobia 2011 (IDAHO 2011)

In recent years, the movement to end anti-gay bullying has taken a lot more meaning to me, in particular in light of the 2010 campaign “It Gets Better”. I wrote about my own view of whether it does or does not get better last year.

Homophobia is unfortunately still, despite Canada’s and Canadians’ best attempts, rather rampant in this country. Heck, even in Vancouver we hear homophobic slurs. Tomorrow (May 17th), a group of us will gather at Floata to celebrate IDAHO, the International Day Against Homophobia (in its 2011 edition).

Every year, the International Day Against Homophobia is the moment to start off an awareness campaign on sexual diversity. The current campaign’s theme is Same-sex Couple – A Story of Love. All too often, people perceive being gay or lesbian in a narrow way in which sexual orientation is reduced to its simplest form – sex.

Just as for opposite-sex couples, same-sex couples form out of emotions and romantic feelings. Sexuality is certainly a part of a couple relationship, and it is often the sexual dimension that sparked the flame. However, a lasting couple relationship cannot be based on sexuality alone. Same-sex couples, formed by either two women or two men, go through the same good and bad times that opposite-sex couples do.

I strongly believe that love is love, and hopefully people will accept this (and mainstream media will begin portraying families the right way, formed by two male parents or two female parents or any combination of these).