Quote:
Originally Posted by DemolitionRed
It wasn't that long ago that we had the same fear about gay people. People seemed to be under this assumption that gay people were somehow a threat to people of the same sex. They were treated for mental illness. Doctors tried to cure them. They were beaten, threatened, teased and humiliated and male gays were considered a threat to male children 
Now, thank god, people have been educated about gay people. Laws have been put in place to protect gays and give them the same rights as heterosexuals. Gays are no longer seen as sexual deviants. They can get married, and they can adopt a child. |
That's a really good point. The fear of gay men being around children being a cause to expect safety issues of gay men being around children. I'm sure many people really did (and some still do) believe that those expectations were totally founded based on news reports and legitimate sources etc. And not even pedophilia but the fear that children might become gay if exposed to or influenced by gay people.
A family friend of mine who's now in his late 60s is gay and when he was in his 20s his best friend at the time had a baby, and although they remained friends he was never allowed to see the child just because he was gay. Seems unbelievable something like that happening now. That they'd remain close friends but it was just a normal thing for him that his friend wouldn't let him around his kid. And I'm sure his friend only had the best interests and the safety of his child in mind (however ****ed up his logic actually was).