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In The Headlines...
As a news junky, I apparently have
a masochistic streak, since I seem to consciously seek out news stories
that outrage me. Recent headlines have offered no dearth of outrageous
stories, particularly regarding the GLBT community.
A seemingly innocuous comment in a
Fox news article recently sent my blood pressure soaring. The story’s
title was, “Forecast: Sex and Marriage with Robots by 2050.” In the
article, artificial intelligence researcher David Levy, from the
University of Maastricht in the Netherlands, predicts that by this
century’s mid-mark, robots will become so humanoid and life-like that
people will begin to marry them. According to the article, Levy recently
completed his Ph.D. work on the topic of human-robot
relationships—including romantic relations and marriage. “Once you
have a story like ‘I had sex with a robot and it was great!’ appear
someplace like Cosmo magazine,” Levy comments, “I’d expect many
people to jump on the bandwagon.” Speak for yourself, doctor. I won’t
be jumping on any robotic bones now or in the distant future.
As if the thought of a human and a
robot bumping uglies weren’t ugly enough, Levy goes on to compare
human/robot marriage to same-sex marriage. He says, “…same-sex
marriage is legal in some parts of the States. There has been this trend
in marriage where each partner gets to make their own choice of who they
want to be with.” Levy theorizes that Massachusetts will be the first
state to legalize human/robot marriage.
“Massachusetts is more liberal
than most other jurisdictions in the United States and has been at the
forefront of same-sex marriage. One hundred years ago…same-sex marriages
were illegal in the United States.” How could someone intelligent enough
to possess a doctorate degree be idiotic enough to compare robot/human
marriage to same-sex marriage, particularly in the pretext of science and
the progression of humanity? Sadly, Levy’s comments are a telling
reflection of our world today, a world in which many people view same-sex
marriage as so deviant that it is comparable to sharing your life with a
bag of bolts. Incidentally, Levy’s thesis title was, “Intimate
Relationships with Artificial Partners.” My partner is NOT artificial,
and neither are our feelings for, nor our commitment to, each other.
Comparing gay humans to inhuman robots sets a dangerous precedent and
pushes us further down the slippery slope of intolerance and hatred.
An especially sad article recently
appeared in Yahoo! News regarding the plight of elderly GLBT persons in
long-term-care facilities. At age 81 and losing her memory, Gloria
Donadello recalls “feeling like a pariah” at a Santa Fe, New Mexico
assisted-living center. When other elderly residents learned that Gloria
is a lesbian, “people were laughing and making certain kinds of
comments, and I told them, ‘Please don’t do that, because I’m
gay.’” After her comment, “Everyone looked horrified,” and it was
made clear that she was no longer welcome during meals, activities, and
conversations, plunging her into a serious depression untouched by
medication. Fortunately, Gloria found a local adult community that caters
to gay men and lesbians, and she is now living out her twilight years with
dignity and respect. But most elderly gays and lesbians are not so
fortunate. In fact, studies show that many GLBT persons avoid
assisted-living facilities and even medical treatment altogether, for fear
of how they will be treated because of their sexual orientation.
But there is hope for our GLBT
elderly through a growing movement to ensure their safety, peace of mind,
and comfort. California has adopted a law declaring that the GLBT elderly
have special needs, like other members of minority groups. In major cities
including New York, Chicago, Atlanta, and Boston, so-called “GLBT Aging
Projects” are forming to train long-term-care providers on GLBT issues.
There is also a burgeoning movement towards setting up GLBT-specific
long-term-care facilities across the nation. In Boston, the Chelsea Jewish
Nursing Home will begin construction in December, and it will include a
unit specifically geared toward elderly gays and lesbians. A company in
Boston has begun selling homes in communities designed specifically for
the GLBT elderly, and the city has openly gay geriatric case managers who
cater toward elderly GLBT citizens. It seems that Boston is leading our
nation in the movement toward ensuring equality and quality of life for
the GLBT elderly. We can only hope that the rest of the nation follows
suit, especially rural areas where GLBT resources are often sorely lacking
for any age. I’ve always felt a special affinity towards the elderly,
and I cannot imagine how devastating a blow it must be to live your life
as a contributing citizen, only to retire to an assisted-living facility
where you’re treated as a second-class citizen by fellow residents and
staff. Unfortunately, our culture in general, and gay culture in
particular, is obsessed with youth. We must learn to cherish our elders,
homosexual or heterosexual. We’ll all be in their shoes one day.
In some happy news, the City of
Philadelphia is standing by its decision to evict the local Boy Scouts of
America from a city-owned property the Scouts have occupied, rent-free,
for years. Since the Scouts refuse to amend their anti-gay policies, the
City of Philadelphia has declared the Scouts in violation of city
anti-discrimination laws, making them unfit to use the property for free.
The Philadelphia City Council has given the Scouts until December 3 to
either rent the property at the fair market value of $200,000 per year, or
vacate the building.
I suppose that this news is
bittersweet. It is sweet that the city government has stood up against
anti-gay discrimination in such a visible way, and it is sweeter that the
council has the chutzpah to stand up against such a longstanding and
cherished American institution as the Scouts. However, it leaves a bitter
taste in my mouth when I think about the boys and young men who may not
learn the many good lessons and qualities that the organization could
teach, if a handful of stubborn, ignorant leaders were not at the helm of
the Scouts.
If the headlines teach us anything
today, the lesson is that we all suffer when prejudice rears its dreaded
head.
Eric can be reached at anitamann@comcast.net.
He would like to wish everyone a happy holiday season and a wonderful
2008.
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