1. http://www.gaymatters.net/gender-inequality-in-the-gay-community/
Gender Inequality in the Gay Community
The answer to the question: “Are gay men treated differently than gay women in different cultures?”
is a resounding yes. It is already a fact that not everyone is accepting of the gay community. But
since there are still two sexes which are male and female, the heterosexual perspective still focuses
on those two identifying factors. For most people, gay men and gay women are still to be viewed
differently and that they should be treated differently as well.
One culture or race that is more at ease with gay men is the Filipino people. In the Philippine
setting, gay men are more accepted because they are associated with being funny. They are
commonly seen in comedy films, TV shows, and other forms of entertainment.
In movies, gay men are always portrayed as the supporting character that makes everybody laugh. In
real life, they are also not taken seriously due to the fact that most Filipinos think that gay men are
only the drag queen type of homosexuals.
Gay women, on the other hand, are more often in the closet because the Filipino culture often
expects its women to be more of the traditional type— someone who would get married to the
perfect guy, have kids, and take care of the home. If someone tends to challenge that norm, it
creates an ill atmosphere.
In mainland China, it is entirely different. Since the Chinese view lesbian relationships as more
spiritual, they are more tolerant of gay women than gay men. The Mr. Gay China pageant did not
push through because minutes before it started, it was ordered to be put down.

2. Another theory that some sociologists think is that gay women are less offensive to the Chinese
society because the public tends to think of sex when they see gay men, but lesbian sex is still a
mystery to them. So in simpler terms, gay women are seen as being in love rather than
being promiscuous.
On the other side of the globe, in another continent, it is safer for gay men to be themselves, but far
more dangerous for gay women. In Uganda, homophobia was so severe that gay women are raped
to be “cured of their disease”. If that’s not cruel, then nothing is. Africans have been homophobic
from the roots of their generation—and activists even say that they are “born with it”.
While an anti-gay bill was always pushed for approval, a lot of brave gays and lesbians still pray and
hope that this may not come to pass. What’s worse is that even American evangelical leader Lou
Engle supports the bill. What’s worse is that he even goes to drastic measures in promoting to “kill
the gays”.
Engle is the leader of TheCall, who was in full support of Proposition 8 in the U.S. He often
preached that homosexuality is a sin that provides a “spirit of lawlessness” and that people should
avenge in the name of God and stop homosexuality no matter what it takes.
While an evangelist like Engle lives in the U.S., for the most part, America is still the land of the free.
They have made a lot of progress in accepting and respecting the gay lifestyle and have improved in
becoming more tolerant of the gay community. But people say that their treatment of gay women is
better than how they treat gay men.
Coming out early in the American society may be a factor. Usually gay men are seen to exhibit the
“qualities” of being gay since middle school, especially in high school. Because of the adolescent
environment, gay men are teased and bullied, to the point of being bashed all the time. Since gay
women normally come out when they are already in college, the bullying is less and somehow gay
women fit in.
This stigma is taken into the adult stage, when everyone else has their jobs and should be taking care
of their careers. In fact, gay men who get into scandals are much publicized in the media. Celebrities
who commit offensive acts towards other people are gravely assigned to showbiz headlines and this
creates a negative impact on the gay society as a whole, especially with gay men.
Gender inequality between gay men and gay women is just the new “men are more superior to
women” idea of the 50s. While we are still in a time when the ignorant still persecute their fellow
humans, then information about the homosexual lifestyle is still not fully reinforced. There is still a
lot of work to be done.
http://www.gaymatters.net/gender-inequality-in-the-gay-community/