As we all know, the media tends to distort the truth about events and people to make their stories more entertaining. Unfortunately, they don’t always paint an honest picture. Most often in film and television we see caricatures of people that aren’t the main character. In the past we saw other non-Caucasian ethnicities and races portrayed in a demeaning manner by a majority of white actors; consequently, we still face a problem with whitewashing roles to get the big A-list actors in every film. Do we really need a repeat of "Breakfast at Tiffany's" ?
Unfortunately, Hollywood has done a similar thing to the LGBTQA (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, and Asexual) community. Too often we see gay characters thrown in as the effeminate side character that is only good for a few laughs or the angry lesbian who hates anyone with a penis. Is that really all we are?
One of the most obnoxious things someone could say to me is, “You’re gay? Oh my gosh, I have to go shopping with you sometime!” Let's be clear, I love shopping, but that doesn’t mean I’m gonna go shopping with every girl in need of a fashion guru. Just because I’m gay doesn’t mean I have a fantastic sense of fashion, nor does it mean I have a supernatural sense of what would look good on your body type. There is no such thing as a Gay Best Friend or GBF. I’m either your best friend or I’m not; my sexuality should have nothing to do with the basis of our friendship. I’m not something you carry around with you like a purse dog. I am a human being. I’m more than an accessory.
Another thing that Hollywood misconstrues is the difference between sexuality and personality. They make out gays to be super flamboyant and feminine while lesbians are considered masculine and rough. Let's set the record straight right now. Masculinity and femininity have absolutely nothing to do with your sexuality. Sexuality is defined as a person’s sexual preference, aka who you want to have sex with. Never is it said that being gay makes you a Beyonce praising queen. Also, your sexuality has nothing to do with your personality. You don’t walk up to a masculine straight man and say “Why are you acting so masculine, like calm down we get it you’re straight no need to rub it in our face!” That just sounds absurd. Your sexuality doesn't define how you behave towards people, so why is that all we see being portrayed in the media?
A big issue with gay and lesbian romantic movies is how different they are from their straight counterparts. Gay films tend to be incredibly sensual and sex driven or focus only on the aspect of not being out of the closet. Lesbian movies a lot of the time ends up being just depressing and overly sexualized for all those straight male viewers (because of course that’s who lesbian dramas are written for).
While straight people get to have as much Nicholas Sparks movie adaptations as they want, the gay community is left to scavenge for something that is honest to who we are as humans, and we are left with over sexualized drama that doesn’t accurately represent our lives. Just because we are gay doesn’t mean that our romantic lives differ from straight people. Of course, Nicholas Sparks isn’t a realistic representation of heterosexual romance but still it’s a lot closer than the "Eating Out" movies.
Furthermore, where are all the gay actors at when there is a gay role? As an actor myself I know that most of my career will be spent playing straight men because those are the roles people are writing. When a gay character shows up in a movie or TV show we often see straight actors portraying them. Tom Hanks, a straight A-list actor, was nominated for his first Oscar by portraying a gay man with AIDS. Charlize Theron won the Oscar for Best Actress in a Lead Role for playing a lesbian in the film "Monster".
Jared Leto won the Oscar for Best Actor in a Lead Role for playing a trans woman in "Dallas Buyer's Club". Why is this any less offensive than a white guy playing an Asian man?
I will leave you with this. Why is it still ok to discriminate and diminish a group of people in the media? We are making progress by calling out the whitewashing of roles but we can’t leave the LGBTQA community behind. People are going to treat us as they see us being treated in movies and TV but we are more than our stereotypes. We deserve to be seen as we are. So speak out and make the change you want to see. Be more than a label.
