The Solutn to "Gay" Insults: Freedom of Speech | Psychology Today

Contents:

• MY TEN-YEAR-OLD SON IS BEG LLED 'GAY' BY HIS CLASSMAT
• THE SOLUTN TO "GAY" INSULTS: FREEDOM OF SPEECH
• WHEN YOUR 4TH GRA SON IS CALLED "GAY"
• MY EIGHT YEAR OLD SON HAS BEEN LLED GAY OM A ‘SCHOOL IEND’ ON PLAYSTN ME
• PARENTS WHO SAY GAY SON WAS BULLIED AT EVERETT SCHOOL FILE $20M CLAIM

MY TEN-YEAR-OLD SON IS BEG LLED 'GAY' BY HIS CLASSMAT

A parent is ncerned that her ten-year-old son is beg lled 'gay' the schoolyard. David Coleman offers advice:Very recently we found out that some boys, his class, were llg our ten-year-old son "gay". Once he knows that you n see how difficult may have been om his perspective, you n try to reassure key msag that your son now needs to hear are that this wasn't his flt, that he did nothg wrong and that the other boys acted particular term that they ed to mock him, llg him "gay", is very problematic.

THE SOLUTN TO "GAY" INSULTS: FREEDOM OF SPEECH

Boys most often e the term "gay" celly, to suggt that other boys are weak, soft or effemate some son has also taken on the unrstandg that others are implyg he is weird or different sexually, sce he also believ they thk he has a "gay" is ed mockgly, like this, is also a very hard label, or term, to "stand up" to. If a boy tri to ny beg gay his tormentors know that they are gettg to him and wdg him all my years of workg wh children who are, or have been bullied, I still have never e across a really good, assertive, rponse that a child uld e if they are lled "gay".

WHEN YOUR 4TH GRA SON IS CALLED "GAY"

There was a recent high profile story the news about an 11-year-old boy who mted suici, apparently bee he uld no longer tolerate beg lled “gay. The most mon sult among kids today is “gay. " Kids get mad when they are lled gay and they sometim get to fights.

I have great passn for gays.

What is one to do when lled gay? Many anti-bully activists sist that anti-bully laws should specifilly mentn sults agast gays and those of non-heterosexual orientns. If be a crime to sult people, then, is hoped, no one will be attacked wh the “gay” sult, and the associated vlence will disappear.

MY EIGHT YEAR OLD SON HAS BEEN LLED GAY OM A ‘SCHOOL IEND’ ON PLAYSTN ME

One of the problems wh makg illegal to ll someone “gay” is that vlat the First Amendment right to Freedom of Speech. The tth is that society has e a long way recent s toward rcg hatred and discrimatn agast gays.

PARENTS WHO SAY GAY SON WAS BULLIED AT EVERETT SCHOOL FILE $20M CLAIM

However, will be a while–if ever–before anti-gay sentiment disappears pletely.

So what is one to do when lled gay? Usg laws to punish people for g “gay” as an sult is not likely to solve the problem, eher. If people get punished for sultg gays, do you thk they are gog to thk, “Now I rpect gays so much bee I was punished”?

We n al wh gay sults all by ourselv, and at the same time help rce prejudice society. Scenar Number One: I am not gay, but you ll me gay.