Equality

I recently listened to Martin Luther King Jr's "I have a dream" speech and it really spoke to me. In it he speaks about his dream where everyone is judged not by the color of their skin but by the contents of their character. He came to this dream after years of racial prejudice and hatred perpetrated on his people for no other reason than the color of their skin.

In this day and age we do not stand for racial prejudice because we can all agree it is wrong to judge someone based on something they cannot change.

Yet there is another area where the exact same judgements and hatreds are being directed and for some reason this is seen as OK and even appropriate.

I am talking about homosexuality. Now I know I have probably already lost a lot of readers right there, but the real question is why? Why do people deserve such hatred, such bigotry, such condemnation based on something they can change no more than you can the color of your skin or indeed the gender of person to whom you are attracted to.

IT IS NOT A CHOICE!

I don't think there is a single man or woman who woke up one day and decided to be gay, to not be able to walk down the street holding hands with the person they love for fear of being beaten, arrested or even executed in some places. It is no more a choice to be gay than it is to be straight, and yet homosexuals are treated as if they are sick, twisted perversions who need to be kept away from children and decent individuals.

Why is it that if a black man is refused the right to vote, marry or express himself in this day and age it is seen as wrong and yet it is perfectly fine to ban gay marriage, to abuse and attack gay people and even in some cases kill them.

This is not equality.

Equality is the fair and even treatment of EVERY single human being on the planet, irrespective of race, creed, belief, sexual orientation or any other difference they may have.

So I say to you, let go of the hate, for holding onto hate hurts you more than those you hate. Instead open your heart to love. Love everyone, it doesn't matter who they are. If we can all do this then maybe our children can grow up in a world free from hate and violence, where war is a thing of the past.

Thank you
Matt