TR Knight last night spoke with students at Miguel Contreras Learning Complex’s School of Social Justice about the Day of Silence.
The Grey’s Anatomy actor opened by offering some regrets about having to even address the a subject, particularly with regard to Lawrence King, before launching into some personal reflection about feeling “wrong” as a child and discussing Simmie Williams, Jr, another, underpublicized queer teen who died this year. Williams was shot for wearing a dress, while King lost his life for having a crush on the wrong guy, his killer.
Knight uses this point to point a finger at intimidated straight men, saying “straight guys feel so threatened by us – look at me, I’m not going to hurt you!” Crushes, he concludes, are completely natural and while they may be a nuisance, they are certainly not a license to kill. Or even maim.
He also points out “If a guy wants to wear a dress, so what? It’s not a big deal. Let him wear a damn dress!” But only if the heels match, natch!
How about we take this to the next level?
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queerunity
he is dreamy, i love him
http://www.queersunited.blogspot.com
faghag
OK WTF was up with the audience, they were so fucking rude, let him speak ffs.
ohpuhleez
I think they were high school students, they don’t know how to keep quiet sometimes, but they sounded into it…
Dave
I used to resent TR Knight for hiding in the closet and being one of those SAGS. Not any more, I give him big Props for speaking out, and being in the forefront of Gay rights. Way to go TR!
CitizenGeek
Nicely said, TR Knight!
Z
he is yummy!
http://www.ilovezeren.com
alan brickman
well finally tr is stepping up….I wonder what took him so long….
M Shane
I’ve never really figured out what fear it is that some straight men harbor for gay men being sexyually interested in them. It’s not true across the board. I’ve had more straight friends than gay ones. Some guys have no problem others do.
I can see that some may feel threatened that you would take advantage of them-maybe it has something to do with self confidence. Some straight guys seem to be flattered that you’re interested.
I thinkl that the issue is more that gay men are afraid to show interest, even toward someone who is gay, if they are unsure : a misfortune.
Alan down in Florida
Straight men operate under the assumption that everyone desires them sexually – which is why trolls have no difficulty approaching hotties. This self-deluded desirability extends to naturally being attractive to gay men who, of course, are indiscriminate sluts who’ll do anyone pretty. Go figure.
And the old story remains true – the more homophobic a straight man is the more likely he is not truly a straight man and is just protecting his closet.
leomoore
The old story is nothing but urban myth. I would be quite surprised if all those who hate us are repressed gays. Would that same logic apply to an anti-semite or a racist?
Sometimes, they just hate those who are different from them.
CitizenGeek
But still, straight guys who hate on gay guys are generally very, very insecure about their own sexuality …
Devon Fairchild
Good for T.R Knight to have the time to talk about homophobia in such an important day, where the remembrance of homophobia is still alive and well. He, himself, had to deal with it in his workplace with the likes of Isaiah Washington, so knowing that he surpassed such an experience, makes him more relatable.
Devon Lovely
Go go TR! I want to see him on http://www.maleperfection.net
TR’s a hottie!
M Shane
leomoore: There could be numerous reasons for prejudice, the “urban myth” mauy be right. Itf you’ve read Hitler’s biography or psych speculations about his antisemitism, you may be aware that he was 1/4 Jew (which he hid).The larger notion ingaged there is that involving freudian “projection” and “displacement”: We hate in others things that we dislike in ourselves. The same dynamics might work with racism, e.g. when Afro-Americans.hate Africans.
Emmett Loverde
Yes, the audience was mainly high school students. They were really excited to see him but sometimes they didn’t know when to shut up and came across as a little rude. But I think they were just amazed that he was there — it was a surprise for him to show up at a school assembly.
How do I know all this? I shot the video (sorry for the shaky camera work). It was an important and inspiring speech.
Rob Moore
M Shane, I recognize that there are cases of homophobes using attacks on gays to deflect suspicion of their own sexuality away from themselves, but I don’t buy the claim that is so casually flung about that a vociferous homophobe is simply trying to hide his or her own homosexuality. My experience is that most often it is simply dislike of something different reenforced by something like religion that appears to make it alright to give full expression to the dislike.
It has been claimed by many that Hitler’s antisemitism was because he was trying to hide his own Jewish ancestry. Most historians do not accept that Hitler had Jewish ancestors. At the time Hitler’s father was born in 1837, Hitler’s paternal grandmother was not married and never revealed who was the father. She apparently was working as a housekeeper at the time for a Jewish family, which gave rise to the notion that the 19 year old son in the family was the father, but there is no good documentation. Hitler’s father used his birth name of Schiklgruber until he was 39 when a new birth certificate was issued showing his stepfather as his father and changing his name to Hiedler. Very few researchers believe Hiedler was really the father. In any event, there is no way to completely disprove the story, but virtually nothing that supports the story. Personally, I think Hitler was like almost every rabid antisemite I’ve ever met. His antisemitism stemmed developed from growing up in poverty and with limited education.
Mike
I am of the other persuasion that I am infinitely more attracted to straight men rther than gay men. Truthfully, I would venture to say that most if not all gay men are very much attracted to straight men but refrain from admitting this because of the stigma attached to wanting something that in many cases ridicules or dislikes you, thereby desiring those who will not allow you to have them. So we decide to make it seem we re not attracted to straight men to begin with. That is not what I hear when talking with gay men..they have a very strong desire for straights. I myself am in a relationship with a woman who I do love but we invite straingt men into our bed where my wilf will be orally pleasured by handsome young rugged mostly blue collat types, while I orally service them. Something I have always desired to do but never had the opportunity given my previous circumstances. We find nothing wrong with thes relationship and intend to continue indefinitely. Having been privy to some very handsome young straight men I could only once dream of having, I can tell you there is noting that compres to being allowed the Privelige to service these young men. I can now say my life is complete.
M Shane
Rob: I don’t, on face value accept the old hack about hidden homosexuality. However if you accept the premise that humans are unconsiously made to contain varying degrees of bisexuality , some more homo/some more hetero. and that life syle choices(inc. boundaries) determine which way that many /not all people go, then the people who have had heterosexuality reinforced have a tendancy to defend that lifestyle. You have to remember that heterosexual keys pervade this culture , not just in religion, but in movies, sports and nearly everything. The inducement to do something different is a profound challenge.
So we are talking about a complex issue.
Having know numerous different prostetutes-both gay and trade, I know that regardless of the stimulation the heterosexuals do different thins to maintain their sense of not being gay , even though they take m,oney to be “serviced”.
Dave
Hitler’s (paternal) grandma did not work for a Jewish family. That was a rumour widely disputed, for the very good reason that no Jews even lived in the area where she worked!