Is it so bad to be gay ?

[Khira]

Hello,
my friends, teachers, parents nearly everybody I know have a very bad behavior. Being gay is a disease. There are lots of prejudice and bad jokes although Germany is a very " tolerant country."

[engeltma]

Hello Khira,

I think that gays are tolerated completely in Germany.

You wrote that your parents and teachers think different. In my opinion is that wrong attitude, because it is total not relevant which gender you love. Imagine, in some southern states it is normal that the men make love to other men. There men only makes love with women, if they want children. I also think that the church should change their attitude, because :censored: couples also have the right to get married.

Best regards
Thomas

[LivingInAmerika]

Coming from America, I can't speak for Germany, but here I think there is an increasing trend towards the acceptance, or at least a grudging tolerance, towards homosexuals. I personally have no issue with gay people, and have several gay/bisexual friends myself. In America, there has been an explosion in the last 10 years or so in the general awareness of gay people and especially gay rights through the media (especially TV). A lot of it has been about getting people, especially the older baby boomer generation, to realize that being gay is not a mental disorder/disease and such. Many of the younger people today (30 and younger) are fairly tolerant of gays, especially compared to their parents. Of course, there are still incidents of "gay bashing", our term for verbal/physical abuse against gays, and I'd say that general attitudes of people as a whole tend to be more tolerant in the urban areas around the country, as well as the western states like California.

Like the OP said about Germany, America claims to be a tolerant society, and I believe that most Americans are indeed fairly tolerant, if still somewhat prejudiced, of homosexuals. However, there are still a lot of of older people (45 and older) who are not so tolerant, and the states in the Deep South, which are the states which were Confederate during the Civil War, have a reputation for being the most anti-gay areas of the country. I think that over the next decade or two, as the younger and more tolerant generation of which I'm a part of becomes the "adult" generation, we will see continually increasing amounts of acceptance for homosexuals in this country.

[stevius]

Don't think so. Over here bisexuality for example bein' gay is still accept. Myself know actually one gay guy but i don't mind. Lik' that he admit that fact. So what?

[Valdo]

Hm,
in comparing with my country (Serbia) Germany is a heaven for gay population.
Here, I wouldn't dare to expose my sexual orientation to any of my colleagues on job, to my str8 fellows, and especially to my parents. Only my gay/lesb friends know who really I am.
I have a boyfriend about 3.5 years, and nobody from my family know what role in my life he has.
For my gay friends living in lies is usual, and that is unfortunately a custom in all Balkan countries
So Khira be happy, i would like to be on your place...

[tillmatic]

I think it's easy to say that you are tolerant about homosexuals. Actually I think if people really get involved in a situation like for example a family member is outing, then you would see the real attitude towards :censored:. I would nobody critise about beeing shocked in the first moment, even I would be shocked if my son told me he's gay because it is simply not natural. But all of us are human beeing and no one should be go down in value for anything, especially not for beeing gay.