On letter regarding article on campus homophobia JP

False Distinction

As one who would be labeled homophobic by what he calls the "politically correct," Patrick Horn '99 takes offense at being lumped in along with racists and sexists.

He feels that there is a distinction between his views and those he finds unacceptable. But I would like to point out to him that the line he draws to distinguish these views is phony.

He, along with many other conservatives, claims that homophobia is a reaction to behavior, while racism and sexism disparage people for unchosen "human characteristics."

You can't pick your sex and skin color, so it isn't fair to discriminate based on those criteria.

But you can choose your behavior, so if you choose an unacceptable "lifestyle" (i.e. homosexuality), you can and should be spurned by those of us who are "normal."

Don't sexists claim that they have no problem with women, but just object to the "unnatural behavior" of women;s equality? Is it no longer outrageous when someone claims to like black people, so long as they don't "act black?"

An anti-semite is certainly no less frightening if he says, "I don't hate you because you're Jewish; I hate you because you celebrate Yom Kippur."

Even without going into the issue of whether one can "choose" to be gay, we can see that Mr. Horn's "behavior" distinction is very troublesome.

racism and sexism can also be formulated with behavior as the criteria for classifying people.

A mere definitional change does not make these other forms of bigotry more acceptable, so it should not be used to justify homophobia.

Andy Gallia '97

Letter to the editors of the Daily Princetonian, published on September 26, 1995.