Quote from: PanoramaIsland on February 12, 2010, 02:32:56 PM
I sort of zoned out once they called fa'afafine "men." That's FOX for ya, though.
I'm always interested in how different sectors of academia attempt to explain sexuality and gender roles...
Me too. Sadly, Faux can hardly be described as academia.
I had a gay uncle, on my father's side. He was my father's eldest brother. He was a Dr and served in WW2 as an officer, I think in the Royal Navy.
By 1949 he was dressing as a woman and in 1950, his picture was splashed across a Sunday newspaper, I think it was the Express.
Anyway, he had his licience to practice suspended and was ostrocised by his family and friends. He left the country and went to Italy.
He was never spoken about in my family.
I recall, in 1971, another of my father's brothers went to see him. He apprantly stayed for a few hours before being thrown out of the house. That brother was as arrogant a sod as you could ever meet. He would have considered it to be a blessing upon his brother, not to mention the peasants, for him to be gracing them with his presence. Being thrown out was one of the real highlights of my life.
His son is a senior lawyer and some years later, beat the s**t out of me for smiling when it was mentioned. I found it rather ironic that this guy with his pretentions of right and wrong should think it acceptable to beat up someone he knew was made of putty. But hypocricy knows few limits. But as a man I once cared for as a patient in a long stay psychiatric hospital once said, the difference between the upper classes and crooks rotting in prison, is connections.
I only found out the truth about the gay uncle by accident. My father, having done the fashionable thing and divorced my mother, was dating. I met one of his dates who told me all about it. Before that, all I knew was that he was very much the black sheep.
I did manage to have a brief conversation with my father and elder sister about my uncle. I discovered his behaviour apparently only happened after his mother died in 1948.
My grandmother, was, by all accounts, a very strong, domineering woman, obscessed with her social status. Her husband had been highly decorated in WW1 and especially during the 1920s had received a number of benefits, including being made headmaster of a very large private school.
We know, of course, that homosexuality is part of the individual.
I confess, I've often wondered, if we had met, would we have gotten on?
I have also wondered if we are simply co-incidence or of there really is some genetic connection?
