I am 45 years old.
I have a good job.
A loving relationship.
A close-knit family.
Good friends.
A nice house.
Great pets.
And a nice car.
I work, eat, sleep, shop, exercise, laugh, cry, pay taxes, vote, follow the laws and attempt to be fair and kind to others.
I try to stay involved in current affairs.
And I try to keep an open mind.
I am also a target of intolerance, scapegoating and incitement that borders upon hysteria and violence.
My ability to have a committed and universally recognized relationship has been directly attacked by the president in his internationally monitored State of the Union address.
Despite the successful integration of gays in other militaries and the crisis in the reserves and other areas, I am not allowed to serve freely in the military–even in a non-combat capacity.
Despite a national blood shortage, I cannot donate blood or be an organ donor in spite of the advances in early detection of infectious diseases that are applied to all prospective donors.
My tax dollars are being funneled to organizations that have been given exemptions that allow them to discriminate against me.
I am one of the gay Americans who have become the new scapegoat for everything that is wrong in America.
If America is as confident and secure as W thinks, how can it be so afraid of its gay and lesbian citizens?
America can only be strong and secure when it embraces fairness, tolerance and respect for all people and stops amplifying the differences by classifying people based upon sexual acts, skin color, language and the other differences that can divide us.
