Isn't it interesting, and terribly predictable, how every time a person of privilege feels their privilege is threatened, they start whining about special interest groups. It's also terribly boring. I'm realizing that people who can't have a discussion without dropping into the juvenile act of name calling (and yes, screaming "special interest group" is just another form of name calling) really aren't worth the moment it takes to formulate a sentence, never mind speak it or type it. It's pretty sad, because there is this hope that through respectful dialogue we can all arrive at places of mutual understanding and respect. But you can't reach that place with someone who doesn't want to. It's like being in an abusive relationship - you can't make the other person become whole and healthy, you can only take care of yourself. Unlike an abusive relationship, we have to live in this world and interact to varying degrees with these people, we don't get to walk away to find more loving and accepting places to be. Instead we have to stay and struggle through, finding ways to hide and fight and create bubbles of loving accepting communities. Those bubbles seem to be getting larger and overlapping, yet still it seems there is so much hate around too.
Today for instance, our own MP here in Fredericton, Keith Ashfield, spoke up in favour of hate and intolerance when he voted "No" on Bill C-389. What harm does it do to protect gender variant people, compared to the harm it does to not offer that protection? Why do some have this need to oppress and put down those who are different from them? And why are so many of us who are different from the supposed majority trying so hard to show that we aren't? There is no point to whitewashing - or as a friend of mine so aptly put it recently - straight washing ourselves. We are different. Everybody is different. But for some reason difference is seen as frightening and bad, as something to be spurned. I truly don't understand that. Look at trees and the beauty in a natural and diverse forest compared to one of Irving's monocultured tree farms. Not only the beauty, look at how much healthier the diverse forest is. Diversity is one of Nature's ways of protecting everything. Celebrate diversity, eh.
As for Bill C-389, fortunately the Bill passed this second reading. The third reading will be in February or March. Below is contact info for Keith Ashfield if you'd like to tell him what you think of his vote today, and what you expect him to do next time.
Love and blessings to you all.
I find that New Brunswick isn't overly friendly to diversity and change in general. Didn't some people trying to start a goat cheese business get turned down by the food inspector telling them "New Brunswickers eat cheddar, they don't want your goat cheese"?
ReplyDeleteThat sums up the province so well.
Wow - I hadn't heard that, about the goat cheese... I'd believe it though.
ReplyDeleteHi lunartension,
ReplyDeleteThanks for posting that comment over at Strange Boy's... I've added your blog to the blogroll at http://www.queercanadablogs.ca. Do you know of any other blogs by queer canadians, or by queers in canada? Please let me know, so that I can add them too!
Take care,
FG.
PS. Out here on the west coast, it's all goat cheese, all the time... Except that it's crazy expensive, and I can't afford it.