‘What did I miss?”
“We’re not allowed to say
things are gay anymore. Apparently it’s insensitive.”
“Oh my God. That’s so gay.”
Fast forward to 2004. I am in
the changing room in the Whangarei Girls’ High School gym, determinedly keeping
my gaze fixed on the floor. Unless you were already accepted by the popular
group, looking at someone while changing was the ultimate faux pas. To do so
was to risk being labelled a lesbian, a fate from which your reputation may
never recover, no matter how many guys you were caught making out with at the
after ball.
Jump with me now to 2008, my
final year at Whangarei Girls’. The head boy of Whangarei Boys’ is crowned king.
But, in a shocking twist, his girlfriend isn’t named queen. That honour is bestowed
on one of her best friends. The fallout that resulted was huge. Think a younger
more attractive version of Brexit. Rumour had it the head boy’s girlfriend cried
in the bathroom while the newly crowned king and queen awkwardly danced to
Bleeding Love. The popular click took weeks to recover.
Yet, in this, the glorious
year of 2016, at the WBHS/WGHS ball, queen and queen reign supreme.
The LGBTQ rights movement fascinates
me, and absolutely floors most Christians, who have a tendency to put their
hands over their ears, sing ‘Jesus Loves Me’ to themselves, and pretend it isn’t
happening. But not only is it happening, it’s happened, and Christians, I feel,
have two choices. We can let it make us bitter and twisted and become horrible
people that no one likes. Or, we can graciously accept that not everyone thinks
the same as us, and focus on the silver linings, of which there are plenty.
To see young people supporting
a minority group instead of bullying and alienating them is massive. Yes, it’s
over an issue that I may have different views on. But, our young people can now
make accidental eye contact in the changing room without fear of being bullied
for their assumed sexual preference. That, I feel, is something we can all
celebrate.
Another thing that LGBTQ movement
has taught us is that social change is possible. It is mind blowing to think
that just 30 years ago homosexuality was still considered a crime in this
country. In 1986 the act to decriminalise sex between men passed, but only
just. Many MP’s were quite happy for it to remain illegal. In 2004 The New
Zealand Herald conducted a poll showing that 54% of Kiwi’s were against same
sex marriage being legalised, and yet in 2013, just nine years later, the
marriage equality bill passed with a clear majority in parliament. To have come
so far in thirty years is truly remarkable, and a testament that rapid cultural
change is indeed possible.
And yet we look at other issues
that are considered blights on NZ society, binge drinking, child poverty,
domestic violence. Area’s in which it seems we have seen no positive change for
years. Why can we break through in some things but not others? Perhaps it’s
because these issues require a little more personal effort. They involve us
getting to know our neighbours, and making a phone call if we think something
isn’t quite right. They involve us taking responsibility for our own drinking
habits, maybe even calling out a friend who we know buys alcohol for their 15
year old. They may even involve, God forbid, deciding to financially support a
local food bank or charity. All these things carry a little more risk than adding
a rainbow filter to your Facebook profile picture and sharing a status with a ‘love
is love’ hashtag.
But, imagine what could happen
if everyone got as passionate about these issues as they did about LGBTQ
rights. To say they are too complex and will never change is, in my opinion, a
total cop out. It is entirely possible to take current social norms and turn
them completely upside down.
Just ask Whangarei’s latest
queens.
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