Tag Archives: gay

Prejudice in the 21st Century

You look on appalled and concerned

Just as I look at you.

Maybe he’s out for walk,

Bird watching,

Enjoying the sun or the weather.

Oh no, that can not be,

We haven’t seen him before!

Where did he come from?

Where is he going?

He must be up to no good.

Casing the joint,

Looking to rob us,

Rape our women,

Set fire to our homes,

Surely he must be a criminal,

He does not belong here!

But why incredulous?

He doesn’t look like us,

His type doesn’t live in this neighborhood.

He’s the wrong color,

Certainly he must be muslim

Or gay,

Or dealing drugs to our kids

And hates this country.

This is the twenty-first century,

Haven’t we moved beyond our prejudice?

Shamefully…

No!

Hateful glances say no,

Joblessness says no,

Homelessness says no,

Hearts and minds say no,

Ignorance still exists,

The year,

The decade,

The century matters not.

In correctness some bite their tongues,

But their medieval minds dictate.

Thoughts expressed through actions,

Conversations held in the shadows,

The like-minded nodding in approval.

So little have we progressed,

Claims of enlightenment ring hollow.

Baseless assumptions poisoning us,

Fear used as justification,

Repetition brainwashing the ignorant.

When will it end,

This perpetuation of hate,

Cloaked as patriotism, religion,

Our constitutional right?

~

~~ Dominic R. DiFrancesco ~~

There Is A Thaw

There is a thaw, too long in the making;

Not just of snow and ice nor lake or window pane,

We are on the cusp of a thawing of ideals.

Like the first breaths of spring,

Fragrant and refreshing after a long brutal winter.

~

What beauty awaits as blossoms,

Every color of the rainbow paints winters bare landscape,

Each one equally beautiful.

So many had fought and died to see this day,

Sun shining, blue skies, a warming breeze

Before returning to the earth.

~

You were not forgotten

As successive springs sprout new generations

In the image of those preceding them.

Your loss was not for naught brothers and sisters,

A hopeful spring has come.

Spread beyond your garden borders

To mingle amongst the forests and fields.

~

~~ Dominic R. DiFrancesco ~~

Equal is Equal – A Haiku

Image Credit: seiu.org

Image Credit: seiu.org

Equal is equal

Only when convenient

Discrimination

~

~~ Dominic R. DiFrancesco ~~

Of Marriage Equality

This incessant fighting,

Selective equality,

Blatant discrimination,

Is this what America is about?

~

Answer!, Those of you waving the constitution in our faces!

You cannot pick and choose when to hold it in high esteem,

You cannot pick and choose when and what to disregard.

~

You say marriage equality is evil,

You say you are defending the children,

It will destroy conventional marriage,

Destroy the family.

~

Nay I say!

The demise of the two parent family occurred long ago,

Half consumed by the flames of divorce.

I ask you, is not love of greater importance?

~

Gay my friends, is not a disease,

It is not contagious,

It is not some choice made on a whim,

It is not a choice at all, but determined at birth.

~

You heathens hide behind your religion,

You hide behind the robes of your God

So that you can carry on your campaign of bigotry feeling justified,

Distorting the word you so deeply cherish

To the detriment of your fellow man.

~

Oh, but how funny it is!

How opinions change when they enter your life,

When they are your sons and daughters,

When they are your friends or next of kin.

Suddenly the world seems so much clearer

And that which you have taken exception to seems to disappear.

~

Raise your voices dear friends!

Stand with your brothers and sisters,

Stand with your sons and daughters,

Stand with those having little voice.

We must be one if we are to be a great nation,

United…Equal…and Free!

~

~~ Dominic R. DiFrancesco ~~

A New Day, Another Poll

A new day…another poll.

Do they like us more today than yesterday

This referendum on hate and bigotry is sickening

We are not new,

We have always been here.

Hiding in the shadows for fear of retribution.

Frequently the target of slings and arrows

Thrown by our brothers and sisters.

Sadly, sometimes they hit the mark.

Why such animosity?

We breath the same air you do,

Drink the same water,

Eat the same food.

We are born of the sacred vessel like you

And we die alone as you do.

We love like you do,

We long to be loved like you do.

We are children of God like you.

You know us though you may not know it.

We are your sons and daughters,

We are your friends and acquaintances,

We are the person you pass on the street,

We are the teacher in your schools,

We are the soldier fighting for your freedom,

We are fireman and policeman,

We are the teller at your ban,

We are the checkout clerk at your convenience store,

We are parents,

We want to be parents,

We were born this way,

Though you think it a choice.

We are gay not broken,

We are not something you need to fix.

We are all created equal,

Wasn’t that the promise made to all of us

Not just to you?

                                 ~

~~ Dominic R. DiFrancesco ~~

* I wrote this piece because I am tired of the endless polls regarding American’s attitudes toward gay marriage.  We seem to have this morbid fascination with the LGBT community to the point that  many of us are willing to discriminate against them just to keep them from marrying.  In my opinion, not only is this absurd, but it is also unconstitutional and should never have been an issue in the first place.  I personally have family members who are gay and I have neither treated them nor looked upon them any differently than anyone else because of their sexual orientation.  I have never felt threatened by them, nor have they ever been a threat to the children in our family.  They are terrific people.  Folks, you don’t chose to be gay, you are born that way.  Isn’t it time we get over our homophobia and extend the rights to them as citizens that they are guaranteed in the U.S. Constitution and put an end to this nonsense.

Shame of Intolerance

Drama perseveres,
We remain shackled and chained to our past,
Bound to ideals thought long ago buried.
~~
Under the same sky we are born and die,
Returned back to the earth caste-less.
~~
Equality seems a distant dream.
~~
We feign to have grown,
Only to rebound to our stunted ways,
Taking aim at the latest victim.
~~
Shouldn’t we be color blind to the flesh by now,
Incomprehensible is it to have to legislate,
Over and over and over.
~~
These delusions are not the end,
Fear mongering has become both sport and folly,
Substituting understanding for hostility and ignorance,
Attempting to rally the naive.
~~
Those that hide behind their faith,
Calling evil, those beliefs that differ,
Claiming superiority,
Believe the propaganda.
~~
We think we have progressed,
Advanced beyond infantile characterizations,
But we have not, we have digressed ,
Becoming more intolerant.
~~
Residents of the rainbow are criticized and shamed,
As if their orientation was free will,
Demoralizing them as abominations before God.
~~
Shallow and nescient is your moral constitution,
When will those of conscience rise up,
Ushering in diversity and equality.
~~
Freeing those marginalized by a witless society,
To live full and fulfilling lives.

~~ D. R. DiFrancesco ~~

A Delusional Vision

By D. R. DiFrancesco

You say it’s for our own good,
You know better than us,
Claiming to be erudite,
But displaying nothing but contempt..

The mold you had cast,
Lies cracked and crumbling,
Still you try to force us to conform,
Assuming we are incompetent.

Hiding behind evangelical fervor,
You treat us as children,
Too naive and simple to surmise what is right,
Sinful beings needing your protection from ourselves.

When did we become so helpless,
You angry old men,
Surrounded by your white marble walls,
Casting retribution over your fiefdom.

Showing little veneration for the gentler sex,
You rule over them with feign compassion,
While valuing them as nothing more than objects,
What despots you are.

Under whose authority is love within your purview,
You look down upon those who do not believe as you do,
Regarding them as broken and immoral,
You vile creatures.

Do they not bleed as you do,
Are born innocent, live and die,
Crave love and acceptance as you do,
What makes you so self-righteous?

You despise those less fortunate,
Consistently questioning their ethics,
You claim they are lazy and felonious by nature,
Begging for alms at every turn.

Do not pretend to know them,
You have never visited their neighborhoods,
Struggled for your next meal,
You would not survive a day in their shoes.

“Pull yourself up by your bootstraps”, says you,
Your totalitarian battle cry,
Toil and sweat, and you can be like me,
Easily said from the pillowed comfort of your penthouse.

We are not like you,
Neither fate nor inheritance have looked favorably upon us,
Our labors scarcely provide for the bare necessities,
Still we have hope in our childrens futures..

Your greed and cold-heartedness have blinded you,
Morally corrupt,
Like the gluttonous tick you bleed society dry,
To build your delusional visions of utopia.