The unintended pain inflicted on the LGBTQ+ community when it comes to Pete

[Politicub]

Implicit bias has entered the picture when it comes to criticism of Pete. It’s one thing to hold the opinion that he isn’t someone’s top choice. All of the candidates have pluses and minuses.

But it becomes ugly and hurtful when people start saying the fact that he is gay and has a husband is one of the reasons why he should not be VP.

Gay people have been hearing “wait,” “a gay person can’t possibly do that,” and “sit down, I know what’s best for you,” throughout our lives.

We are a resilient community, and have weathered worse.

Still, we need to call out bias when we see it, explain why a comment may come across in a hurtful way, and ask that people walk a mile in someone else’s shoes and imagine what it’s like to hear such comments over and over again.

Then imagine if you had a son or daughter, niece or nephew, or friends that were hearing that some things are off limits to them by virtue of who they love.

I firmly believe that some people will get it, and things will slowly change for the better. Coming out to our family and friends changed so many minds.

I feel so heartened when our allies speak on our behalf. Everyone can be an ally, and I hope that is what people choose other than saying or implying, “no, you can’t.”

I just ask that people advocate for their preferred candidates in a way that does not bring in or imply implicit bias. You can make a good case without casting sexual orientation or gender identity as a negative factor.