Pink Triangles and Rainbow Dream: Essays on Being Gay in the Real World

This book is intended for gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, and non-gay readers. It is divided into three sections: On Being Gay, On Being Politically Correct, and On Being Gay in the Real World. Section I, On Being Gay, focuses almost exclusively on what it means to be gay, the kinds of discrimination gays and lesbians face in their daily routines and lives, and how to face those issues of inequality, discrimination, and bigotry. Section II, On Being Politically Correct is directed toward contemporary issues within the gay community and presents a number of controversial topics that are hotly debated among gays and lesbians. Section III, On Being Gay in the Real World, focuses on issues that affect gay men, lesbians, and bisexuals as they try to live effectually in the prevailing majority community. This section includes several essays that are not necessarily gay-specific, but can apply to people of every orientation. Section III emphasizes that all people, regardless of orientation, race, religion, gender, nationality, or ethnic background share the same hopes, fears, dreams, and desires. John Arthur Maddux writes in the introduction of his book: Read this book with an open mind. You never know what you might learn, or re-learn from a new perspective. Learning is essential to growth and if it ceases to be so, our hope for social, environmental, and political change will be thwarted, and we may find ourselves no better off than our primordial ancestors who lived in intellectual darkness and superstition.