The Toursim departments in some other Valley cities have decided to label themselves as "gay-friendly". This strikes me as the definition of "selling your soul for the dollar".The gay community is known for having a lot of discretionary funds available for vacations, etc. while minorities & traditional families often do not. As such, rolling out the red carpet for the gay community can result in a better bottom line for a city. To some, it may be a no-brainer from a financial standpoint.It is my hope that the Mesa government does not fall into this trap of seeking a gay-friendly label when there are in fact so many people who do not approve of that lifestyle. Now for those of you who are bristling already, I am not suggesting calling ourselves "gay-hostile". Frankly, Mesa should continue to work on its reputation as being rather… hostile… to non-whites. Unfair or not, the MLK holiday fiasco made a deep impression and still rings clearly in the memories of people nation-wide. Many people still consider this city to be a strong-hold of racism that rivals the Deep South. A venue like the Mesa Arts Center actually helps by selling out shows like Seal, Sinbad, and the San Jose Taiko that demonstrate an appreciation for diversity and bring non-Mesans to town. I am writing what most Mesans are saying. We don’t want to be labeled as "gay-friendly" destination. Such a label simply does not fit with the religious or traditional family sensibilities of the majority residents here. We can find other ways to bring visitors and their money to Mesa (an NFL stadium would have been nice, but I won’t go there!) Gay-hostile…absolutely not! People have a right to make their own choices, but I don’t want a small committee to decide what my city does and/or does not invite here. "Family-friendly", "Outdoorsmen friendly" - there are so many options. Let’s go with something like, "Mesa: Something for everyone", and live it!
Mesa: Something for everyone!December 11th, 2006, 10:00 am · Post a Comment · posted by tanyamihailovLeave a Reply |
