Finally, a New Entry!

I haven't been blogging much lately. My main excuse is that I've been
busy working on that database for Saints and Sinners. All the entries
are done, but now I'm checking them to make sure it has updated
information.

Maybe it's because it's February, and everyone has Valentine's issues up, but it seems like every site I've been to has pictures of young couples in love, talking of marriage. At my last writer's salon, we talked a bit about the trend we've seen in young gay men who fully expect to marry, have kids, and move to the suburbs. And
then we all sighed. This cautious hand wringing reminds me of a
conversation I overheard at the West HollywoodBook fair between two mature gay men - possibly partners.

Gentleman
1: "They don't even know about what we had to go through, and they
don't care. All they (young gay men) want to do is go out and dance and
have a good time. That isn't why we fought so hard for our rights."

Gentleman 2: "Yes it is."

Is
assimilation going to kill gay culture? Is all that vibrant urban life
going to get sucked into the suburbs and made into a bland, homogenized
life? That's the fear. But that's the fear of every unique culture in
the US. Blend and disappear, lose your identity, or stay separate? When your young are talking about doing the blend and disappear routine, does it feel as if the community has failed, or succeeded? This is going to be an interesting topic in the gay community in the coming years, and I predict a lot of soul searching, academic papers, and heated rhetoric. Stay tuned.