State of the Gaytion

The first post for the much-anticipated SupergayDetroit blog is, naturally, a rant about the state of the gay-tion in the Detroit area.

In a happy moment for Ferndale, they were recently named the third most gay friendly city in the United States by The Advocate. Third! That's tremendously exciting, what in the world did they do to rate this? According to the article in the Royal Oak Daily Tribune, the Advocate was looking for new places to recognize, and in addition to considering census information, household income, quotes from residents and an openness to diversity, they considered:

... quality of public schools, retirement communities and condos, an integrated sense of community and the quality of environment for raising children

OK, excuse me? Quality of public schools? Quality of environment for raising children? What has gay life become? This is what we've fought so hard for, the right to blend?

Being gay used to mean a little bit of fabulous, a little bit of edginess, a little bit of fight and a little bit of fun. It was about standing out, not blending in! And somehow we lost some of that. The fight now is not for protecting our right to be gay, but fighting for our right to act straight. And that truly saddens me.

Now don't get me wrong, it's really important for gay families to have safe and supportive environments. And it's great that more and more gay men and lesbians feel the family life is an option for them. HOWEVER, I don't think it's acceptable that the beacon of hope for the gay community in SE Michigan is an area recognized for it's family friendliness and retirement options! Uh uh, that's not working for me.

So that's what this blog is about: finding the fabulous, the edgy, the fight and the fun in Gay Detroit. SupergayDetroit will be a guide to living your gay life here the right way.

Oh, and for all the smuggles who are saying, "Hey! Ferndale is a great gay area and why would we need anything else?" I offer the following coda from the article in the Daily Tribune:

But you don't have to be gay to enjoy Ferndale, according to new City Manager Bob Bruner, who said Ferndale is a great place for people of all sexual orientations. Ferndale homeowner -- and heterosexual -- Tom Gagne agreed.

"I thought we were gay-friendly for years and I'm glad we finally made that list," said Gagne, who opposed the human rights ordinance because he thought it was unnecessary. "Ferndale isn't just gay-friendly, it's family-friendly, pedestrian-friendly, business-friendly. It's a great, friendly town."

So let's give a big fuuuuuuuuuck you to the Ferndale-ites who minimize the uniqueness of gay life, and who espouse what tends to be the prevailing attitude of the residents of SE Michigan. Oh sure we're gay friendly, just like we're friendly to everyone, like businesses. Because it's exactly the same.