Your Crooked Heart

Liz Feldman once said "It's very dear to me, the issue of gay marriage. Or as i like to call it: 'marriage.' You know, because I had lunch this afternoon, not gay lunch. I parked my car; I didn't gay park it." You may be wondering why I opened up with this particular quote. In case you are, have patience young Padawan... I'm getting there. I don't understand discrimination. I don't understand homophobia. What's the point? We're all the same on the inside. Love is love, people are people. The Principle of Autonomy and Respect for Persons states that everyone has the right of self-determination subject to the equal and competing rights of others. In other words, we all have the right to well, rights. It shouldn't matter where you come from, what you believe in or if you like men, women or both. It may sound like the lyrics to the next John Lennon's Imagine , but I honestly don't see why people can't put these kinds of things behind us. Firstly, it's nobody else's business and secondly, bullying kills. And voilà, this is why I chose that quote. It's no one else's business who you love or marry.

As you're reading this, I'm sure you can think of too many headlines in which a child or teenager committed suicide over repeated sexual orientation and/or racist slurs. In fact, we discussed one in class the other day, which is what sparked my interest to write on this topic. I don't know about you, but I'm done with hearing those stories. I'm done with the hate and the angst. I mean, it's the 21rst century for crying out loud! We might not have the flying cars depicted in Back To The Future, but people all around the world are in the middle of rebellions and revolutions, fighting for what they believe in: the middle east with the Arab Spring, North America and Occupy Wall Street. People are trying to change, so why can't we eliminate some of these last, great weaknesses of human nature? The ostracizing and the aggression need to stop. I know we've all heard it a thousand times, and yet the message still doesn't seem to be getting through to everyone. Why the hate? What's the point? What do you benefit from hurting someone else? Nothing. Nothing is gained, and nothing every will be.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not dreaming of a utopia. I'm not saying I wish we could all get along like we used to in middle school or that I wish I could bake a cake filled with rainbows and smiles and everyone would eat and be happy like the girl from Mean Girls, but I am saying that people have the right to be comfortable in who they are. This also implies that everyone has the duty to be treated with respect. Do unto others as you would like done unto yourself. Bashing them because they don't like the same things as you is not remotely acceptable. Yet people get away with it every day. That's the truth, and I've had it with the fact that people can't put aside their beliefs and differences. Beauty and character come from our flaws and all our little imperfections. We all have faults and we all have beliefs.

In WH Auden's poem, As I Walked Out One Evening, the speaker writes "You shall love your crooked neighbour, with your crooked heart." I shall, because no one is perfect, and we could all use a little more love. Will you? Leave your thoughts in the comments.