The Complexy of ‘That's So Gay' | Psychology Today

Contents:

• DON’T LL ME HOMOPHOBIC: THE PLEXY OF ‘THAT’S SO GAY’
• "THAT'S SO GAY" IS JT SO WRONG
• THE COMPLEXY OF ‘THAT'S SO GAY'
• WHAT’S SO BAD ABOUT “THAT’S SO GAY”?
• ‘THAT’S SO GAY’: HERE ARE SEVEN HOMOPHOBIC MICRO-AGGRSNS WE NEED TO RETIRE
• DO SAYG ‘THAT’S SO GAY’ MAKE YOU HOMOPHOBIC? THIS DOCUMENTARY FDS OUT – WATCH
• "THAT'S SO GAY!" HOMOPHOBIC LANGUAGE AND SCHOOL
• ARE HOMOPHOBIC PEOPLE REALLY GAY AND NOT ACCEPTG IT?
• ARE HOMOPHOB REALLY GAY?
• THE WORD ‘HOMOPHOBIC’ IS GAYAXCXTRACK 9 ON DEFENRS OF THE HATE 20011 VIEWER11 CONTRIBUTORSTHE WORD ‘HOMOPHOBIC’ IS GAY LYRICS[INTRO](GAY, GAY, GAY, GAY, GAY...)[VERSE 1]I'M NOT AAID OF FAGGOTSBUT I LIKE MAKG FUN OF THEMIT WAS MA UP BY SOME P.C. FAGGOTTO MAKE FAG HATERS LOOK STUPIDTHE WORD "HOMOPHOBIC" IS GAY! (YOU'RE GAY!)(GAY!)[VERSE 2]ANTI-HOMOPHOBE BY BTAL TTHIS A PATHETIC ATTEMPT TO BE P.CKEV'S OBVLY NOT A HOMOPHOBEBEE HE'S A FUCKG FAGGOT[OUTRO](GAY, GAY, GAY, GAY, GAY...)YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKEEMBEDCANCELHOW TO FORMAT LYRICS:TYPE OUT ALL LYRICS, EVEN REPEATG SONG PARTS LIKE THE CHOSLYRICS SHOULD BE BROKEN DOWN TO DIVIDUAL LUSE SECTN HEARS ABOVE DIFFERENT SONG PARTS LIKE [VERSE], [CHOS], ETC.USE ALICS (<I>LYRIC</I>) AND BOLD (<B>LYRIC</B>) TO DISTGUISH BETWEEN DIFFERENT VOLISTS THE SAME SONG PARTIF YOU DON’T UNRSTAND A LYRIC, E [?]TO LEARN MORE, CHECK OUT OUR TRANSCRIPTN GUI OR VIS OUR TRANSCRIBERS FOMABOUTHAVE THE SI SOP ON THIS SONG?SIGN UP AND DROP SOME KNOWLEDGESTART THE SONG BASK A QUTN ABOUT THIS SONGASK A QUTN *‌WHEN DID AXCX RELEASE “THE WORD 'HOMOPHOBIC' IS GAY”?WHO WROTE “THE WORD 'HOMOPHOBIC' IS GAY” BY AXCX?DEFENRS OF THE HATE (2001)AXCX1. ALL OUR FANS ARE GAY2. LIMP BIZK THK THEY’RE BLACK, BUT THEY’RE JT GAY3. YOU WERE TOO UGLY TO RAPE, SO I JT BEAT THE SH OUT OF YOU4. HEBOSS5. EVEN THOUGH YOUR CULTURE OPPRS WOMEN, YOU STILL SUCK, YOU FUCKG TOWELHEAD6. IF YOU DON’T LIKE THE VILLAGE PEOPLE, YOU’RE FUCKG GAY7. OBVLY ADOPTED8. WALKER, TEXAS CORPSE9. THE WORD ‘HOMOPHOBIC’ IS GAY10. YOU CONVERTED TO JUDAISM SO A GUY WOULD TOUCH YOUR DICK11. BON TRACK #4EXPAND CREDSWRTEN BYSETH PUTNAMRELEASE DATE2001TAGSROCKGRDREMETALEXPAND COMMENTSADD A MENTSIGN UP AND DROP KNOWLEDGE ?GENI IS THE ULTIMATE SOURCE OF MIC KNOWLEDGE, CREATED BY SCHOLARS LIKE YOU WHO SHARE FACTS AND SIGHT ABOUT THE SONGS AND ARTISTS THEY LOVE.SIGN UPGENI IS THE WORLD’S BIGGT LLECTN OF SONG LYRICS AND MIL KNOWLEDGE

DON’T LL ME HOMOPHOBIC: THE PLEXY OF ‘THAT’S SO GAY’

But parents who are enough aware of language’s substrata n help by helpg their kids’ schools unrstand the value of practicg the same kd of zero tolerance for homophobic language that they do for racist or anti-Semic or bullyg language. I argued that straight men’s e of phras like “that’s so gay” uld only be unrstood by three key factors: first, the tent wh which was said; send, the social ntext (homophobic or otherwise); and third, the effect had. If young gay people are sayg that they do not experience the phrase “that’s so gay” as homophobic – and if they are even g the phrase themselv – then perhaps we should accept their arguments and ncentrate on other battl.

People alg wh ternalized homophobia may feel the need to “prove” that they’re straight, exhib very stereotypil behavr of straight men and women, or even bully and discrimate agast openly gay people. Other LGBTQ people Your lol LGBTQ muny center Onle muni of LGBTQ people Q Chat Space is a way for LGBTQ+ teens to nnect wh each other through live-chat group discsns — no matter where they are Tsted LGBTQ adults that you may already know, such as fay members or teachers Straight people who are alli to LGBTQ people A Gay/Straight Alliance at your high school, if applible. If you feel safe dog so, speak up when other people are beg homophobic or biphobic, such as makg offensive jok, g negative language, or bullyg or harassg someone bee of their sexual orientatn or inty.

"THAT'S SO GAY" IS JT SO WRONG

In my new book, The Declg Signifince of Homophobia, where I spent a year rearchg what means to be a guy school today, I found that the flt posn for straight male youth is to be supportive of gay rights, clive of gay peers and cril of homophobia. In The Declg Signifince of Homophobia, I velop a new mol for unrstandg this changg e of language, which highlights how the tent, effect, and environment wh which words are ed are vally important termg whether homophobia is prent or not. ” You n also be creative wh , rporatg stori, illtratns or even ics to munite why “that’s so gay” is appropriate and how , as well as other typ of name-llg, n hurt others.

THE COMPLEXY OF ‘THAT'S SO GAY'

A new documentary om young filmmaker Amy Ashenn exam the rurgence of young people sayg “that's so gay” to see whether that phrase is homophobic or whether, her words, “language has evolved. A word that origally meant happy and reee beme a ntral label to scribe homosexualy, and end up beg a term ed to ppot somethg people don't like, fd embarrassg, or want to distance themselv om.

She also talks to a soclogist who argu that sayg “that's so gay” isn't homophobic, along wh an activist om an LGBT anizatn who tak the oppose view and wants all to “get the meang straight. ” Ultimately, she believ that we n't overlook the damage that's done when we nflate a word that scrib someone's inty wh somethg negative: “Sayg ‘rgh, that's gay' reveals a lack of llective unrstandg of what means to intify as gay. The current Ofsted amework looks explicly for evince of how schools will meet the needs of all groups, wh a specific emphasis on Lbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgenr pupils.

The way homophobia exhibs today looks far ls like an irratnal fear – as most phobias are – and more like a “ratnal disapproval of s effects on society”, as stated a piece by The Atlantic on how the md ratnaliz homophobia.

WHAT’S SO BAD ABOUT “THAT’S SO GAY”?

Homophobic parents may kick their children out of their hom for beg gay, and homophobic bulli may tnt, rile up, attack, or ostracize their peers who don’t act or intify as straight. This type of homophobia n be scribed as “liberal homophobia” and n manift the followg ways: hopg that homosexuals try to supprs their sexualy, wantg gay people to keep their relatnships private, and sistg that gay people should nform to societal “norms”. LGBTQ people, spe beg queer themselv, may also exhib negative attus towards gay people and harbor homophobic feelgs as a rult of learng and ternalizg homophobic thoughts and behavrs growg up.

‘THAT’S SO GAY’: HERE ARE SEVEN HOMOPHOBIC MICRO-AGGRSNS WE NEED TO RETIRE

Acrdg to IDRlabs, a pany that publish psychologil tts onle, this tt is “wily ced the empiril lerature and is nsired one of the most valid stments for measurg homophobia.

As stated the paper published by Wright, Adams, and Bernat, the tt nsists of three factors: “a factor that asss maly negative gnns regardg homosexualy, a factor that asss primarily negative affect and avoidance of homosexual dividuals, and a factor that asss negative affect and aggrsn toward homosexual dividuals. Acrdg to PBS’ Frontle, which reproduced the sle on s webse as part of the “rourc” sectn for s piece on “The Asslt on Gay Ameri”, the Wright, Adams, and Bernat Homophobia Sle is “not a perfect measure of anti-gay feelgs or ias, and is not a predictor of potential for anti-gay vlence.

What this means is that takg the tt outsi of actual rearch ndns don’t get you a scientifilly accurate asssment of your psychologil profile, particularly wh how you feel about gay people. The word "phobia" the name nveys that fear of difference leads to hate; homophobic beliefs n be said to origate out of fear that the whe supremacist and lonial stat quo regardg genr and sexualy will be challenged, shatterg the worldviews of many people, but homophobia manifts as actns that are anythg but fearful.

DO SAYG ‘THAT’S SO GAY’ MAKE YOU HOMOPHOBIC? THIS DOCUMENTARY FDS OUT – WATCH

Ahead, we will review the history of homophobia, the ways that manifts, and the tnal opportuni that n help a person shift om a stance of homophobia to one of acceptance.

"THAT'S SO GAY!" HOMOPHOBIC LANGUAGE AND SCHOOL

"Whereas homosexualy per se impli no impairment judgment, stabily, reliabily, or general social or votnal pabili, the Amerin Psychiatric Associatn (APA) lls on all ternatnal health anizatns, psychiatric anizatns, and dividual psychiatrists other untri to urge the repeal their own untri of legislatn that penaliz homosexual acts by nsentg adults private.

Homophobia operat on a personal and systemic level, while heterosexism operat primarily on a systemic level bee is both the societal belief that heterosexual people should be prrized above all others as well as the real-world implitns of that belief.

The may sound siar, but the difference is that homophobia is a personal feelg you hold, while heterosexism supports those feelgs to be part of the systems of our stutns. While transphobia and homophobia have thgs mon like beg related to misogyny and sexism, transgenr and nonbary people experience thgs that cisgenr LGBQ+ people don’t, which lls for more specific language.

ARE HOMOPHOBIC PEOPLE REALLY GAY AND NOT ACCEPTG IT?

Lack of acceptance of your own inty: Homophobia n be ternalized if a person don't want to accept their own inty or seeks to protect themself om homophobia by targetg more visible LGBQ people. This occurs when someone shows hatred, disgt, or disda for LGBTQ+ dividuals through their words and actns; such as by makg stereotypil jok, g homophobic slurs, or engagg physil vlence.

For example, even if you never e offensive nam agast LGBTQ+ dividuals directly, sually g phras like “that’s so gay” or “you’re so gay” negative or mockg ways supports the homophobic view that “gay” equals “lser” or “unworthy. Sharg accurate or false rmatn about the LGBTQ+ muny is easy to do on purpose or by mistake, but, the rult is the same—others pick up the hurtful misrmatn and spread along, further seedg homophobia. For example, ’s discrimatory and offensive to be okay wh heterosexual public displays of affectn, but to label, siar homosexual displays as “over-the-top” or “awkward, ” let alone “wrong” or “appropriate.

A seri of studi recently published the prtig Journal of Personaly and Social Psychology found higher levels of homophobia dividuals wh unacknowledged attractns to the same sex, particularly when they grew up wh thorarian parents who also held homophobic attus.

ARE HOMOPHOB REALLY GAY?

In the Universy of Rochter's prs release, Netta Weste, the study's lead thor, said, "Individuals who intify as straight but psychologil tts show a strong attractn to the same sex may be threatened by gays and lbians bee homosexuals remd them of siar tennci wh themselv. Acrdg to the team of rearchers, this study is the first to document the role that both parentg and sexual orientatn play the formatn of anti-gay attus, cludg self-reported homophobic attus, discrimatory bias, implic hostily towards gays, and endorsement of anti-gay polici. They were then shown the words "gay, " "straight, " "homosexual, " and "heterosexual" as well as pictur of straight and gay upl, and the puter tracked precisely their rponse tim.

THE WORD ‘HOMOPHOBIC’ IS GAYAXCXTRACK 9 ON DEFENRS OF THE HATE 20011 VIEWER11 CONTRIBUTORSTHE WORD ‘HOMOPHOBIC’ IS GAY LYRICS[INTRO](GAY, GAY, GAY, GAY, GAY...)[VERSE 1]I'M NOT AAID OF FAGGOTSBUT I LIKE MAKG FUN OF THEMIT WAS MA UP BY SOME P.C. FAGGOTTO MAKE FAG HATERS LOOK STUPIDTHE WORD "HOMOPHOBIC" IS GAY! (YOU'RE GAY!)(GAY!)[VERSE 2]ANTI-HOMOPHOBE BY BTAL TTHIS A PATHETIC ATTEMPT TO BE P.CKEV'S OBVLY NOT A HOMOPHOBEBEE HE'S A FUCKG FAGGOT[OUTRO](GAY, GAY, GAY, GAY, GAY...)YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKEEMBEDCANCELHOW TO FORMAT LYRICS:TYPE OUT ALL LYRICS, EVEN REPEATG SONG PARTS LIKE THE CHOSLYRICS SHOULD BE BROKEN DOWN TO DIVIDUAL LUSE SECTN HEARS ABOVE DIFFERENT SONG PARTS LIKE [VERSE], [CHOS], ETC.USE ALICS (<I>LYRIC</I>) AND BOLD (<B>LYRIC</B>) TO DISTGUISH BETWEEN DIFFERENT VOLISTS THE SAME SONG PARTIF YOU DON’T UNRSTAND A LYRIC, E [?]TO LEARN MORE, CHECK OUT OUR TRANSCRIPTN GUI OR VIS OUR TRANSCRIBERS FOMABOUTHAVE THE SI SOP ON THIS SONG?SIGN UP AND DROP SOME KNOWLEDGESTART THE SONG BASK A QUTN ABOUT THIS SONGASK A QUTN *‌WHEN DID AXCX RELEASE “THE WORD 'HOMOPHOBIC' IS GAY”?WHO WROTE “THE WORD 'HOMOPHOBIC' IS GAY” BY AXCX?DEFENRS OF THE HATE (2001)AXCX1. ALL OUR FANS ARE GAY2. LIMP BIZK THK THEY’RE BLACK, BUT THEY’RE JT GAY3. YOU WERE TOO UGLY TO RAPE, SO I JT BEAT THE SH OUT OF YOU4. HEBOSS5. EVEN THOUGH YOUR CULTURE OPPRS WOMEN, YOU STILL SUCK, YOU FUCKG TOWELHEAD6. IF YOU DON’T LIKE THE VILLAGE PEOPLE, YOU’RE FUCKG GAY7. OBVLY ADOPTED8. WALKER, TEXAS CORPSE9. THE WORD ‘HOMOPHOBIC’ IS GAY10. YOU CONVERTED TO JUDAISM SO A GUY WOULD TOUCH YOUR DICK11. BON TRACK #4EXPAND CREDSWRTEN BYSETH PUTNAMRELEASE DATE2001TAGSROCKGRDREMETALEXPAND COMMENTSADD A MENTSIGN UP AND DROP KNOWLEDGE ?GENI IS THE ULTIMATE SOURCE OF MIC KNOWLEDGE, CREATED BY SCHOLARS LIKE YOU WHO SHARE FACTS AND SIGHT ABOUT THE SONGS AND ARTISTS THEY LOVE.SIGN UPGENI IS THE WORLD’S BIGGT LLECTN OF SONG LYRICS AND MIL KNOWLEDGE

In the experiments, participants who reported themselv to be more heterosexual than their performance on the reactn time task dited were most likely to react wh hostily towards gay people. This ngence between implic and explic measur of sexual orientatn predicted a variety of homophobic behavrs, cludg self-reported anti-gay attus, implic hostily towards gays, endorsement of anti-gay polici, and discrimatory bias such as the assignment of harsher punishments for homosexuals.