"G" for Gayborhood-Not

Ravenwood in the Gayborhood-Not

The White-Haired

Harbinger of Gratitude

Tim Hare

Copyright HARE 2009

All Rights Reserved

"Shining the Rainbow Light of Gratitude

from the historic West Ward neighborhood

of Easton, Pennsylvania"

"G" for Gayborhood-not

(no homo!)

Yet another prejudiced trend these days in America is to shout, after greeting a person of the same gender, "no homo!," as in: "Hey hot dude, you look soooo sexy in that shirt, no homo!"

This statement, uttered in a deep low manly voice, is to clarify beyond any doubt whatsoever that the person paying or receiving the greeting is strictly and avowedly heterosexually-behaving, and wants the world to know that, often very loudly, as if to convince themselves of course.

This increasingly-common comment is hastily uttered after a handshake, a hug, a knuckle-bump, a casual greeting, a glance, a thought, or a breath. After all, God forbid everybody isn't created heterosexual, or at least having the courtesy to pretend to be (like so many do)!

So it is with much gratitude that I noticed recently that the West Ward is a Gayborhood-not (no homo). Funny how it's harder to see something that isn't there!

This makes the City of Easton rather unique. Of all the neighborhoods, townships and surrounding boroughs, there is no Gayborhood anywhere to be found! Most cities have a thriving Gayborhood. We dined in a gigantic one in Washington D.C. last month when we hoofed it in the National Equality March demanding federal civil rights.

However, this is not to say that Easton is no-homo!, far far far from it! My hubby Earl and I know, and have known, countless non-heterosexuals in Easton and nearby. Don't worry, you closet cases, we won't name names, so you can stop shunning us, OK? (that also goes for our families of origin, listen up!).

Rather than living in a typical gay ghetto, now called a Gayborhood, in Easton there is, actually and strangely, none! What's up with that?

Earl and I tried so diligently to create one in the West Ward when we moved here 25 years ago, but we failed miserably. Most of the dozens of our Queer Tribe who we recruited who moved here have since been gathered or scattered. We were disappointed, at first, to learn over the years that Easton simply cannot support a Gayborhood - it's just too darned live and let live! Sheesh!

This local rapidly-growing, and already-huge, population of non-heterosexuals, while busy working, raising their families, paying higher than a fair share of taxes while being denied most basic civil and human rights, etc., is also busy destroying America with The Gay Agenda, did you know? But that's for another blog, I don't want to be a bloggermouth.

Your probably already know that this Queer Tribe of ours is sometimes called The Gay Mafia (as in, "Your money or your poodle!"). The Gay Mafia is now scattered everywhere around here, stealthfully, or honestly like me and my husband dare to be.

These fine Queer neighbors live with their families on College Hill, in the South Side, in Wilson Borough, the West Ward, Downtown Easton, Forks Township, Williams Township, Palmer Township, Easton Heights, Dutchtown, Phillipsburg NJ across the river, the Poconos, New Hope, Bethlehem, Nazareth, Tatamy, Alpha NJ, all over Northampton and Lehigh Counties, farms, small towns, and all the suburbs, as well as everywhere on Planet Earth all through history.

Not that long ago, when it was illegal for American citizens created like Earl and I to be breathing non-heterosexual persons, Easton had four or more gay bars, not always at the same time. At these bars, and nowhere else, it was safe to publicly congregate as an avowed non-heterosexual, since these places were not raided by the police too often, if ever.

An arrest could usually guarantee jail, career-death, family-disownment, disinheritance, and often suicide. It's shameful what fear and loathing by heterosexuals, or those pretending or wishing to be, can do to a neighbor who just wants to chat or dance with the one they love! Can we say "false-witness against our neighbors?" See, we can quote scripture too. But that's also another blog.

One bar that was hiding in plain sight was on South Side, one was shockingly near the Wilson border, one was brazenly on Centre Square, and one was invisibly on Northampton Street. Another was gay mainly on Sundays, walking distance on Main Street, Phillipsburg NJ.

This is where Earl and I met 33 years ago - it was Love at first sight! The atmosphere there was fun on "Gay" night, because Blue Laws prohibited bars being open in New Hope, and elsewhere in PA on Sundays. So it drew a huge regional crowd.

Yes, the decor was a tad tacky. After all, how much can be done with a roll of aluminum foil and a disco ball? But at least you didn't need a 'get out of jail' card or a cyanide capsule just to go dancing.

I'm grateful that in Easton, there is no need for Earl and I to ghettoize into a Gayborhood to feel safe from police harrassment or other hateful violence that is actually increasing these days, especially in Gayborhoods, as a backlash to our few minor gains of partial-equality and human rights.

I'm grateful that in our wonderful West Ward, no avenues are ablaze with rainbow flags to maintain an illusion of safety or acceptance. Non-Heterosexual Pride Month we do fly our rainbow flag proudly. Please remember that, since every day in America is heterosexual-pride day, there are no flags required for that special day, ever. Talk about 'special rights,' puleeze!!

The true reality in the West Ward (and all of Easton) has proven to be 'live and let live' - quite a remarkable, and out of sight, badge of honor to be fortunate to live with every single Today!