“How Gay Are We?” is the question posed on this month’s cover of Cleveland Magazine, over a silhouette of a rainbow Cleveland skyline. This headline and the corresponding article are recognizing the upcoming Gay Games that take place in the Northeast Ohio city August 9-16. The article goes through a brief history of Cleveland’s LGBTQ culture, mentioning only briefly that Ohio voters are “equally split” on the same-sex “marriage” debate. The overwhelming majority of the article speaks of how the fight for marriage equality and “civil rights” must continue, and mentions the many times in Cleveland history in which the fight has not always been “rainbow colored”, citing most recently the tragic murder of three transgender individuals in 2013. While few would argue that every human being has a right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness, many scratch their heads at the LGBTQ community’s definition of equality, and those of us who dare to question their motive are being increasingly silenced from public dialogue. The upcoming Gay Games demonstrate this quandary. For those who say they desire their definition of equality, one may wonder why those in the LGBTQ community are reinventing the wheel in so many ways?

Cleveland (Image source: cleveland.com)

The Gay Games began in 1981 as a “vehicle of change”. While the games are open to anyone who would like to participate, only about 10% of the participants do not identify as gay. According to the website, the impetus for these games was that in the 1980s, being an athlete or identifying as gay were mutually exclusive. Today, this is not the case—as illustrated by Jason Collins, with his Sports Illustrated cover story and Michael Sam’s same-sex Draft Day smooch. The Gay Games expects upward of 9,000 participants as well as around 20,000 spectators. The events include everything from the typical diving, soccer, ice hockey, and figure skating to the perhaps not-so typical cheerleading, “dancesport”, darts and rock climbing.

If those in the LGBTQ community desire what they see as equality, why are they constantly doing things to separate themselves? In addition to the Gay Games, there is also Miss Gay America, as well as Gay Pride Parades that occur in seemingly every city across the world. The problem? There are already sporting events, pageants and parades all across America. One cannot help but wonder why those in the LGBTQ community insist upon doing their own thing, making things different, when they can just as easily participate in the events already in place.

If those in the LGBTQ community want equality, why is it as if no one is permitted to question their lifestyles, when just about every other lifestyle is debated and questioned? In the Cleveland Magazine article, it is written, “In fact, two of the three taxi companies operating at Cleveland Hopkins International Airport faced objections from dozens of drivers, who refuse to tote LGBT fliers to and from the airport during the games. At the third company, at least two drivers will also take the time off.” This was written in reference to the fact that not everyone is excited about the Gay Games coming to their hometown, and the tone seemed to many of its readers to be sarcastic and dismissive. If living the homosexual lifestyle is not allowed to be questioned, the issue no longer able to be debated, why is seemingly every other lifestyle fair game in public conversation? Take marathon running for example. If a person says she is training for a marathon, without a doubt someone will tell them about the dangers of extreme running. If a person is a vegetarian, they will get questioned as to how they obtain their iron source. And, if a mother chooses not to breast feed her baby, someone will without a doubt make a comment about the immune system risks with bottle feeding. These unsolicited two cents are to be expected by people who make, really, any choice in life. While people may be rightfully angry with people who question their lifestyles, it is a part of being part of rational human society. Why can we not question the gay lifestyle?

My issue with same-sex “ marriage” is that I believe (in conformity with science and the behavior of all animals) that sex is, first and foremost, for procreation. The minute that fact became separated from sex, and sex became solely a form of pleasurable recreation, we lost the battle. When contraception was introduced in to every day life, the mentality toward sex changed. Pope Pius XI wrote in his encyclical letter, Casti Connubii, “No reason, however grave, can make what is intrinsically contrary to nature to be in conformity with nature and morally right. And since the conjugal act by its very nature is destined for the begetting of children, those who in exercising it deliberately frustrate its natural power and purpose are acting against nature, and are doing something that is base and intrinsically immoral”

How gay are we? My answer would be that it shouldn’t matter. Sexual orientation is not the whole of our identity, or at least, I believe it should not be. People are people, and we are all Americans. The LGBTQ community redefines so many things that it is as if they are creating a parallel culture. Magnifying differences between traditional American culture and LGBTQ culture also magnifies the degree of separation between the two. Play games in leagues just like the rest of us. March in community parades with your favorite community organization. Redefining the wheel is unnecessary. Become a part of the American culture that already exists and focus on becoming One Nation again.

Brittany Higdon is a native of Ohio and has been residing in the Washington, DC area for the past six years. She holds a B.A. from Franciscan University of Steubenville and an M.Ed from the University of Virginia. She is a Reading Specialist and is passionate about Catholic education. When she is not teaching or writing, she is exploring the Smithsonian Museums, traveling, and playing with her ferocious Dachshund/Yorkie cross named Cannoli.

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