Ever wish you could talk with someone who understands poetry and the mysteries of love? Someone with a connection to Aphrodite and a great understanding of love. What advice would Sappho give?
Sunday, March 18, 2012
Sexism, Racism and Homophobia
Dear Sappho,
Were you influenced and limited by homophobia during your lifetime and if so how did it affect your writing, and your love life?
Dear Love Life In my time women on Lesbos were free to express strong passions towards one another, whether the attractions were sexual or not. We held hands and danced. We sang and touched each other without repression or fear. You have been taught to repress your creativity and your love. Imagine what the freedom to love would feel like in a pre Christian or pre Freud world.
The word homophobia was first coined by clinical psychologist George Weinberg (1971) in his book Society and the Healthy. Same sexual relationships have been practiced in all societies throughout history and is openly accepted in many cultures. Western civilization is generally repressive of sexuality in any form, other than intercourse necessary for procreation or sexual activity in the context of heterosexual marriage. This repression is currently being used as a major plank in the GOP platform to drive hate, mistrust and emotional prejudices as a voting block tactic.
I don’t think there are any rational reasons to regard homosexuality as wrong or less valid than heterosexuality. There is no argument against homosexuality that is not rooted in homophobia as it is based in heterosexual thinking and conditioning. Cultural homophobia is largely caused by social norms which dictate normal sexuality. By keeping the accomplishments and contributions of GLBT people invisible, we keep GBLT people invisible. By bullying GBLT people we make it acceptable to bully anyone who does not conform to society’s expectations.
Homophobia is caused in part by competition for power. When scapegoating or marginalization is successful, dominant groups don't need to take responsibility for injustice or give up privilege. Societies create scapegoats to maintain the status quo and the positions of those in power. Minority groups considered as “others” including African Americans, Asian Americans, Latin Americans, Jews, American Indians, women, and GLBT people have all been blamed for a variety of social and economic problems.
Homophobia is a form of sexism that hurts heterosexuals as much as it does homosexuals by limiting the full expression and emotional expanse of the human condition to not only act indifferent to the same sex but to treat same sex attraction as the enemy of the church, the state, the family. Yet the normal sexual variations inherent within human sexuality ensures that homosexuality will continue to exist as it always has, occurring naturally and randomly as part of the full spectrum of human sexuality.
The denial of equal civil rights to lesbian, gay, and bisexual persons inevitably leads to limitations on the rights of all. Governments that have been most oppressive to homosexuals have also oppressed people on the basis of sex, race, ethnicity, religious beliefs, and class. Homophobia is pervasive in this and many other societies and cultures. Because we are all products of our society, most of us are homophobic, regardless of our sexual orientation. Identify homophobia, not homosexuality, as the real problem to be addressed. Think about the similarities and differences between homophobia and other forms of oppression. Try to deconstruct the fallacies of racism, sexism and scarcity thinking. Understand that they are based in fear and limited thinking.
As for me, I experienced homophobia after my death. My poetic works were purposefully changed, destroyed, fragmented and I have been left to the mercy of my translators, most who were grounded in heterosexual ideologies. However my life on Lesbos has been remembered as a period of grace, beauty and loveliness due to the poem fragments and acknowledgement of freedom from repressive sexism and the troubles it has caused so many people.
Dear Love Life
ReplyDeleteIn my time women on Lesbos were free to express strong passions towards one another, whether the attractions were sexual or not. We held hands and danced. We sang and touched each other without repression or fear. You have been taught to repress your creativity and your love. Imagine what the freedom to love would feel like in a pre Christian or pre Freud world.
The word homophobia was first coined by clinical psychologist George Weinberg (1971) in his book Society and the Healthy. Same sexual relationships have been practiced in all societies throughout history and is openly accepted in many cultures. Western civilization is generally repressive of sexuality in any form, other than intercourse necessary for procreation or sexual activity in the context of heterosexual marriage. This repression is currently being used as a major plank in the GOP platform to drive hate, mistrust and emotional prejudices as a voting block tactic.
I don’t think there are any rational reasons to regard homosexuality as wrong or less valid than heterosexuality. There is no argument against homosexuality that is not rooted in homophobia as it is based in heterosexual thinking and conditioning. Cultural homophobia is largely caused by social norms which dictate normal sexuality. By keeping the accomplishments and contributions of GLBT people invisible, we keep GBLT people invisible. By bullying GBLT people we make it acceptable to bully anyone who does not conform to society’s expectations.
Homophobia is caused in part by competition for power. When scapegoating or marginalization is successful, dominant groups don't need to take responsibility for injustice or give up privilege. Societies create scapegoats to maintain the status quo and the positions of those in power. Minority groups considered as “others” including African Americans, Asian Americans, Latin Americans, Jews, American Indians, women, and GLBT people have all been blamed for a variety of social and economic problems.
Homophobia is a form of sexism that hurts heterosexuals as much as it does homosexuals by limiting the full expression and emotional expanse of the human condition to not only act indifferent to the same sex but to treat same sex attraction as the enemy of the church, the state, the family. Yet the normal sexual variations inherent within human sexuality ensures that homosexuality will continue to exist as it always has, occurring naturally and randomly as part of the full spectrum of human sexuality.
The denial of equal civil rights to lesbian, gay, and bisexual persons inevitably leads to limitations on the rights of all. Governments that have been most oppressive to homosexuals have also oppressed people on the basis of sex, race, ethnicity, religious beliefs, and class. Homophobia is pervasive in this and many other societies and cultures. Because we are all products of our society, most of us are homophobic, regardless of our sexual orientation. Identify homophobia, not homosexuality, as the real problem to be addressed. Think about the similarities and differences between homophobia and other forms of oppression. Try to deconstruct the fallacies of racism, sexism and scarcity thinking. Understand that they are based in fear and limited thinking.
As for me, I experienced homophobia after my death. My poetic works were purposefully changed, destroyed, fragmented and I have been left to the mercy of my translators, most who were grounded in heterosexual ideologies. However my life on Lesbos has been remembered as a period of grace, beauty and loveliness due to the poem fragments and acknowledgement of freedom from repressive sexism and the troubles it has caused so many people.
Free Love from Oppression
Sappho