The brutal truth behind the pride flag

By Guest

Did you know that being a homosexual many years ago was classified as a mental disorder? Between 1952 and 1973, homosexuality was classified as a mental disorder by the American Psychiatric Association. Gay men and women across the country were subjected to a variety of treatments aimed at curing their “condition.”

In 1986, President Reagan mentioned the word HIV (commonly known as the precursor to AIDS) in a speech to Congress eight years after the first instance of gay men becoming ill from an unknown disease. It is estimated that over 21,000 Americans were dead from AIDS before President Reagan had even spoken that sentence about the disease. Those years for the LGBT community were a very dark time. It was unclear what your future held. By then, many of my friends had died and many had committed suicide.

So, why does the pride flag matter so much?

I was born and raised in Canton and graduated from Canton High School in 1978. This town has evolved since then from being a suburb of Boston to being a commuter town with an ethnically and racially diverse, as well as an overall larger population. I had an average and happy childhood, with a loving set of parents who only wanted the best for my two sisters and me. As time went on, my parents, members of PFLAG (Parents and Friends of Lesbians and Gays), came to the understanding that they were not to blame for my sexual orientation. But that took time and many sleepless nights.

At a young age, I was so fortunate to meet my life partner. We have been together for over 28 years now, and I am so grateful for having been blessed with this life that so many of my friends were not. About 15 years ago, my husband and I were able to legally marry. We had to wait 13 years to get our marriage approved by the government. We both have been very blessed with our successes in life. We are often asked why we never had children together. Sadly, our answer remains that when we were younger we would have loved to adopt a child, but based on our sexual orientation, it was illegal. Even today in 2019, I am unable to donate my blood unless I remain celibate for 12 months. This is according to federal regulations and does not take into account the health or wellness of the people wanting to donate.

Todays’ statistics of suicide and attempted suicide are sobering to the LGBTQ youths and adults, to say the least. It is noted that around 43 percent of the LGBTQ community have considered suicide. The mental health problems in our community is double that found in the heterosexual community. Because of this, I urge my fellow citizens of Canton to show support for those who are different. I encourage you to raise your flag and show people of the LGBTQ community to see that they are welcome.

The Boston Red Sox flew a pride flag at Fenway Park this year, and seeing that for me was very humbling. I witnessed many local businesses and residential homes putting flags out to show their support recently. This year I had hoped that Canton would join the communities of Mansfield, Boston, Somerville, Quincy and Danvers to name a few and raise the flag at Canton Town Hall … but there is always next year.

The pride flag matters to me because I am sensitive to my community. I am sensitive against all discrimination placed on any community whether it is based on race, creed, or sexual orientation. As I stated, LGBTQ discrimination can cause severe anxiety and lead to very harmful, potentially deadly results. Over the years, my husband and I have lost two roommates to suicide and countless others have died from the AIDS virus. We are reminded of these losses every day.

The pride flag matters to me because I believe it can make a change in someone’s life.

You just don’t know if someone seeing that flag will save them from this darkness.

Alan Rapoport

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