Being Gay

In class last week we discussed how gay men and women are portrayed in the media. Typically when they are depicted the shows play upon the stereotypes of the gay men being feminine, having a fashion sense, and the other things one would associate with gay men. This mold is how people see gay men and they expect real life gay men to fill into this mold that the media portrays. The problem I see with this is as a man that identifies himself as gay, people expect me to act in a way that is deemed fitting of a gay man. Whenever people ask me about the people that I am attracted to they are always surprised that I like men. They give me responses like "I would never guess" or "Are you sure". the question of "Are you sure" is what gets me the most. Just because I do not fit the stereotypical mold that the media portrays or flaunt my sexuality. I am who I am and just because I identify as gay does not mean that I need to act a certain way. I will always have poor fashion sense and be barely able to dress myself. We shouldn't try to make people fit a stereotype or labels but focus more on what makes an individual unique or interesting instead of focusing on details that in the grand scheme of things do not matter.