Create Anything, Including Bigotry?

On a lighter, anecdotal note.. friends who do try to understand my sexuality will sometimes ask me.. "So, when did you first realize you were gay?". My response is generally "When did you first realize you were straight?". Really gets their heads spinning, and some really interesting and positive conversations often flow from that.

I think in Second Life, we have to tackle the problems of bigotry and intolerance (oh, how I hate that word, "tolerance", but that's a discussion that definately doesn't belong here) in much the same way we do in First Life. It starts with choosing our battles wisely, then choosing how best to "fight" those battles. By closing the conversation with "Bye, homophobe", I think FD lost that battle by forefeit.

The most important thing is to just carry on being who you are. You'll pick up friends along the way, and you'll lose a few. Just like real life. Some are hopelessly lost in their misunderstanding of homosexuality, or their misapplied moral judgements, but many others have a keen interest in you for exactly who you are, sexual orientation notwithstanding. Reach out to those folks first.. they will be your best friends, and your strongest allies.

zk

Yea true hehe , but I'm not too different. ;p

I'm a female in SL who likes woman and men almost equally. Where I find love in a person is the spirit, mind, and actions. That alone would classify me as bisexual, However i do have a appreciation for rounded or long body parts. Usually to me the body is irrelevant when it comes to love though. The only thing that i try to restrict myself to is anthropomorphic beings, but i do give other races a chance.

I can't count the Number of times i've been asked that. For a Lot of people, this venue has really been the first time they have ever sat down and Had a conversation with an Openly Gay Person. I consider it an Honest question, and i answer it as Honestly as i can.
I suppose the Computer does add a comfortable Buffer Zone between us so they can Talk, and feel Less Uncomfortable. For some reason, many people equate Gay with Promiscuous, Many women automaticly assume because i am attracted to other Women, i am, Of course, Automaticly attracted to Them Specificly. The thing that i find Particularly amusing is when they are Insulted when they assume i am Attracted to them, Only to become MORE insulted when they discover i am Not. That one always leaves me scratching my head.

Places like SL are Great in that one gets to meet people from all over the Continent, and all over the world. You get to meet people from just about every Culture, and Back Ground. For the Open Minded, it's a Great experience. But i suppose, for some people it can also be a frightening experience. There are people who have grown up in Insular surroundings, Never having experienced anyone, or anything different from thier every day. They Join SL, or some other Venue Only to discover that the "Truths" that they have always Taken for Granted are Not universal. For some, it's an education, for others, it's a Nightmare. They Don't Understand, and as is natural, they Fear what they do not Understand, and (Not to sound like Yoda here) That fear breeds Anger, and Hate. I can Pity those persons to a Point. The ones i Cannot be so sympathetic with are the ones who have been nurtured in Far more cosmopolitan circumstances, and Choose to go through life with Blinders on.

I used to Live among the Goreans. I was Chief Magistrate on a Couple of the Sims. The One aspect i always strongly disagreed with among them was the Various rules that made people Feel Unwelcome. I have always Welcomed people from other walks of Life. Encouraged them to come and see us, and ask questions. I always thought it was a Mistake to Impose our own "Role Play" rules on those who Just came to explore. Unfortunately, I was just a single Voice. Well, people will Never learn about me, or my Life if i Hide in a shell, So, for that, and various other reasons, I've chosen life Outside the Gorean communities.
My point is, I cannot Demand Respect or Understanding from people,, No one Can,, If i am Not Willing to Be Open, and Share. By Shutting people out, I would be Just as Bad as those people who would want to see US shut out. I'm never going to let Fear of Prejudice Force me into a Walled Camp. Bigotry is going to Happen I Have to accept it as i have to accept the rest of the world, But i Don't have to Let it Rule me in the way Many others who have become Isolationist have done.

Angel.

Er... since when did metrosexuals start carrying swords?

Yes. You're absolutely right about eyeliner being too much something or other for the average adolescent brat, midwest or otherwise.

F 'em. Little neanderthal b*stards, all of them. But sometimes they grow out of it.

There are so many style-conscious and artistically-inclined communities in SL where someone would probably call you... average. Or looking great. Or a number of different things that wouldn't be offensive but rather complimentary.

Just like the real world, you've gotta find your place in SL to be you. Or the Second You, as it may be.

Besides, Army Recruiter Guy probably just really wanted to see your sausage but couldn't come to terms with asking. (Although, being called "Sergeant Sausage" could be kinda hot under the right circumstances. -grin-)

Walker, don't let anybody in SL get you down for looking the way you want to look. As long as you're not trying to make someone else's life unbearable, you're entitled to wear as much guyliner as you can stand.

they didn't. unless you know different, the guy with the sword didn't mention anything about looking metrosexual. my avatar sports eyeliner, so i guess i do. my fred perry, scruffy hair, drainpipe trousers and rockabilly shoes don't matter. it's all in the eyeliner. i think i''ll rebel and get skins with more and more eyeliner applied until eventually i look like a panda. that'll stop them. =Di'm perfectly happy with my style, my friends, my activities and abilities in second life. i'm just not going to stop helping out at infohubs in my spare time because they're loaded with homophobic brats, nor will i retreat to any form of dorothyland just to escape them.

i can't get out of my head that comment (not from you) about "presenting" as gay. as irl, most of sl's gay population is invisible because the stereotype is an exception not the rule. the obvious sign usually lies only in an avatar's groups list.

This has probably been said, but I'm gonna say it anyway just to get it off my chest.

My take on this whole thread, meant in the mildest possible way, and NOT meant to dis a single person who has posted:

To expect the bigotry of RL to be absent in SL is being VERY naive.

If people can be anonymous, with NO real punishment for bad behavior (they can almost invariably get a new free account, no matter how many times they are banned), they will always exhibit the absolute WORST of that behavior.

I'm not saying it should just be tolerated. It should not at all. But I feel that it's a lost cause trying to stop it.

Until you eliminate bigotry in RL, you will not ever be able to have the slightest impact on it in SL. You know that's not going to happen as long as there are humans. Eliminating non-verified accounts (therefore putting some substance into making bans stick) would help a little, but probably not much.

Keep on fighting to lessen it. It's an EXCELLENT thing to fight for. But don't put too much of your hopes in expecting it to change, or at least don't blame the Lindens for humanity's problems.

Me, I just mute bigots and pretend they are dead.

I agree -

I think there are a lot of idealists on these forums.

Also I have a feeling the average IQ of SL residents drops daily. Since Second Life has become a popular place rather than a lil cozy corner of the internet you heard about from your geeky (using that word in admiration) freinds.

As long as people are prejudiced IRL they will be in second life. The cosmopolitan mix of ideas and acceptance that many enjoyed will move to proportionally smaller and smaller portions of Second Life as it grows.

Quite Right.

A.

i usually present as androdgenous E.T. When asked what sex i am, i change into jellyfish and ask "now do you really care?" if they jelly themselves in reply then wooooT!!! i guess.

Ok, I am a straight, somewhat A type personality, male. I really don't care if your in to twisted crispy critters or as a old friend wrote in a song, " I don't give a peep if your into sheep, its just... more women for me". Yeah, dats wat I'm screaming! lol. With that in mind, lets not lose sight of the fact, that stupid is stupid and it comes in all sizes, shapes, colors, genders, sexual orientations, nationalities, and religious affiliations. Be joyful of the obvious stupid ones, they are signposts clearly indicating what one should not want to be...