Subject: Feedback--"Heterosexual supremacist" vs. "Anti-gay person"
From: [email-masked]
Date: Thu, 17 Apr 1997 14:33:13 -0400 (EDT)

Hi!
     I've gotten more feedback on this posting than any other!  Here are some
brief outtakes for your review and further comment:

How about "breeder supremacist"?  :-)
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Absolutely yes on the heterosexual-supremecist thing.  The other great thing
about it is that (like white supremecist) the supremecists never argue
with you about it.
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I'll do it; I wish you better luck than I've had against that idiotic term
"homophobia," which is about as inaccurate and agrammatical as words get.
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 I like it, heterosexual supremacist fits perfectly. 
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Excellent posting.  I'll try rephrasing some of my letters to editors.
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I love your idea and will begin using that term immediately!  I agree with
your reasoning 100%.  I read a book several years ago (can't recall the
title) but it also suggested that the term "homophobia" let perpatrators
off the hook too easily.  "Why, we can't be angry at someone who is
afraid, now can we?".  The author suggested the terms "homo-hatred" and
"homohater" instead.  What do you think?
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Why not just say Hetrosexist, instead of hetrosexual supremisist?

>>"Thank you for the feedback.  Your question is a good one and one I did not
anticipate so I had to mark a distinction between the two terms
"heterosexist" and "heterosexual supremacist."
     My analogy would be to the usage of the two different words "racist" and
"white supremacist."  Of course, white supremacy is a form of racism, but a
form of racism taken to an extreme -- including murder, violence and other
acts to take away the peace and safety and civil rights of people of color.
 I would not want at this time to reserve the more mild term "heterosexist"
-- which could be anyone such as my own mother who has not ridden herself of
prejudice yet who is for the right of gays to marry -- for those who go out
of their way to deny us our civil rights or worse our lives.  The latter
people are those I will refer to as heterosexual supremacists.
     Let me know how this sits with you.

I see your point regarding mild hetrosexism versus extreme hetrosexism.  I
guess that my problem with the term stems from the use of the word
supremacist.  It seems so over used these days.  Of course that may only
occur to me because I'm such a news junkie.  We hear this term frequently
these days.
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Notice how these "hetero supremacists" claim that marriage is not
a civil right. Imagine how fast it would become a "civil right" if the
gov't ever tried to interfere with their choice of marriage partner!
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I can't tell you how pleased I am to be reminded that there are really
beautiful people over there!
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     "Heterosexist" is much more appropriate than "homophobic" for the same
reason "heterosexual supremacist" (I would suggest the term "straight
supremacist" as it is easier to pronounce, but I didn't think of it until
your post) is more appropriate than "anti gay person". Both terms put the
ball in the right court where it belongs.
     The term "homophobic" implies that straight people's negativity toward
gays
results from their "fear" of us. I don't believe most straight persons
"fear" homosexuals so much as they feel their heterosexuality is somehow
superior to our homosexuality.  The term "heterosexist" puts the blame on
their arrogance rather than implying that there is something frightening
about us.

>>My fear is that fewer straight people know what the
label "straight" means than know what "heterosexual" means.

Well, by the time we're through rubbing their faces in it I guess they'll
just have to learn! :-)  But whatever we end up calling it, your point is a
good one.  I, for one, am tired of being the "THING" that heterosexuals
"react to", as if the whole of creation revolved around them.  I believe
it's time for straight people to start acting responsibly and to realize
that many of the "so called" problems of society are of their own making,
due to their requirement that everyone be stamped out, cookie cutter
fashion, to *their* image.   
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I like "heterosexual supremacist", but there must be a better
term out there.  Too many syllables.
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I'll try out "heterosexual supremacist" on my congressman once he finishes
digesting my latest criticisms on other issues (Chris Shays was singled out
by the NY Times Saturday for allowing the House campaign fund-raising
inquiries to be restricted to a witch hunt of Democrats).  The Advocate ranks
Shays as the 4th most gay-friendly Republican -- however, his strong support
of DOMA makes him a good test candidate for your terminology.
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What great work you are doing!  I just wanted to drop a note about our web
page.

http://members.aol.com/zoefamily/
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THANKS TO ALL ELEVEN CONTRIBUTORS!  

Let's keep the dialogue going.  Anyone can participate.  -- Rich

HERE IS THE ORIGINAL POSTING:
Subj:	*M*: "Heterosexual supremacist" vs. "anti-gay person"
Date:	97-04-12 21:38:23 EDT
From:	[email-masked]
Sender:	[email-masked]
Reply-to:	[email-masked]
To:	[email-masked]

     I can see no reason not to change the convention and plenty of reasons
to change the convention at this time of the language used for those who
would express disrespect for gay and lesbian equality before the law.  I
propose that the term "heterosexual supremacist" be adopted in lieu of
"anti-gay person."  Reason:  Our struggle as people of a different sexual
orientation for equal rights under the law is a human rights and civil rights
struggle.  No respectable newspaper today would ever use the terminology
"anti-black person" or "anti-African American person."  Clearly the language
convention of choice is "white supremacist."  This convention places the
responsibility for bigotry where it belongs.
     Can we change the conventional use of language?  Of course.  How else
did the use of the word "gay" come about?
     FROM NOW ON, I will substitute the term "HETEROSEXUAL SUPREMACIST" for
"anti-gay person."  PLEASE JOIN ME.
     Example:  The terminology for "Anti-gay" legislator Terrance Tom (in the
Hawaii equal marriage rights debate) would change to "Heterosexual-supremacy"
legislator Terrance Tom.

Richard Beilke
Creator/Proprietor of the Gay Marriage Calendar 1997
[email-masked]
http://home.aol.com/RMBEILKE  
<A HREF="http://home.aol.com/RMBEILKE"> Home Page for RMBEILKE</A>