The Marcus Bachmann Conundrum

[Shana A]

July 15, 2011
Waymon Hudson GoPride.com columnist
The Marcus Bachmann Conundrum

http://chicago.gopride.com/entertainment/column/index.cfm/col/853

Dr. Marcus Bachmann, husband of ultra-conservative Republican presidential hopeful Michelle Bachmann, and his "pray away the gay" conversion therapy clinic have been blowing up the Internet on blogs and Twitter. The issue has rightly made it on to mainstream media news shows, looking into the serious issue of how damaging "ex-gay" therapy can be and the harm that someone like Marcus Bachmann does to people when they practice it in their counseling centers. It's an important issue and I'm glad it's getting the attention it is, yet something else more insidious in creeping into the conversion and threatening to derail the important main story of conversion therapy: speculation on Marcus Bachmann's sexuality.

[...]

We're seeing that very real "he acted too gay" conversation going on in the Lawrence King trial, where they're using a "gay panic" defense in the murder of a young, gender-non conforming school kid in California. We see the real impact of the message that acting outside the expected norm or "seeming gay" is bad far too often, yet here many of us are playing right in to it.

[Vicky]

I fully see the point that the laughter aimed at Bachmann is not going to hurt him or her to any great degree, but what is light laughter at them is vile and demeaning when it is directed at the actual GLBT community.  Just because someone chuckles at the highly empowered dignitaries, does not mean they will not spit or worse on the less empowered.