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If sexual orientation is the same as race…

January 25th, 2010

If sexual orientation is the same as race, why don’t we ever hear about African Americans renouncing blackness and embracing whiteness? Or some other race?  (see previous post.)

Just wondering.

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  1. Marty
    January 25th, 2010 at 20:51 | #1

    Interesting question. From what I’ve read lately, black school kids who “act white” are treated to the same sort of bullying that kids who “act gay” speak of.

  2. Mont D. Law
    January 26th, 2010 at 22:14 | #2

    It’s called passing & it was as common as dirt.

  3. January 26th, 2010 at 23:33 | #3

    Mont
    thanks for your comments. That could explain why someone married a man and later “came out” as a lesbian. “Passing” doesn’t really account for why someone would be lesbian, and then decide to no longer be a lesbian. That is the situation with Lisa Miller. If you read previous posts on this case, I think it is clear that this woman was/is quite unhappy, and possibly disturbed. I don’t think your explanation works in her case.
    Cheers! Dr J

  4. Mont D. Law
    January 28th, 2010 at 01:06 | #4

    “Passing” doesn’t really account for why someone would be lesbian, and then decide to no longer be a lesbian.

    I think it does. A member of a disfavored group disavows that group to join the larger more favoured group because she can pass as a member. Your assumption that she is no longer a lesbian is as false as an assumption the person passing is no longer black.

  5. January 28th, 2010 at 09:18 | #5

    Mont
    the issue in the Lisa Miller case is that I don’t think you, or I, or anyone, can really tell whether she ever really was a lesbian or not. She was married. normally, you would think that means she is hetero. But, no, you think she was secretly lesbian all the time. then, she enters into a couple of different lesbian relationships. but then she decides she isn’t really a lesbian after all. I think the most sensible explanation is that she was, and possibly still is, confused.

  6. Mont D. Law
    January 28th, 2010 at 21:47 | #6

    She doesn’t seem all that confused to me.

    Until she decided she didn’t want to share custody the trajectory of her life was pretty standard coming out boilerplate. Truly, to me, she seems like a lot of people caught in a nasty divorce – running the mother of all PAS cases. She went back to passing because it suited her and because society allowed her to.

    We worry about providing children a mother and father – it’s a shame we have no way of guaranteeing all parents provided are sane.

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