By Zoe Huber-Weiss ‘13, Staff Writer

On August 4, 2010, Judge Vaughn R. Walker overturned the ban on gay marriage voted for by 52% of California’s population, saying, “Fundamental rights may not be submitted to a vote.” He explained that the ban on same-sex marriage was illegal “for the same reasons that courts invalidated laws banning interracial marriage decades ago.” An anonymous member of the crowd outside the courtroom where Judge Walker announced his ruling described the decision as a “momentous show of respect toward the gay community.”

There are several questions and topics for debate that arise from Walker’s ruling, but there is one in particular that pertains to students at Newark Academy: If people are making “momentous show[s] of respect toward the gay community,” why is “gay” still being used as a common insult in NA halls?

When people use “gay” to mean stupid, dumb, or weird, it not only insults anyone in the vicinity who might be gay, but it also instills in teenagers who have not yet come out of the closet a sense that being gay is wrong. Its constant use as a derogatory term creates a hostile environment for them and discourages them from being honest about themselves. Using “gay” as an insult frequently offends people like me who have friends who are gay, not to mention an entire minority. If anybody walking in the NA hallways heard someone saying, “I got a 74, that’s so black,” the consequences would rightly be unimaginable, and the circumstances, as Judge Walker points out, are similar. So why doesn’t anybody even blink an eye when someone says “that’s so gay” in a comparable situation? This slur heard so often at Newark Academy casts a shadow over our mission to be the Global Academy and be accepting of everybody.

Just to clarify, I am not saying that people who use “gay” as a derogatory term are bad; in fact, some of my close friends say it all the time (but not around me anymore). Furthermore, I am not denying anyone the right to speak out against gay rights if that’s what they believe in. It is true, however, that not only is “gay” being used entirely too much as an insult (even if unintentionally) at NA, but also that nobody does anything about it. It has become so embedded in our everyday vernacular that nobody even notices it anymore, which is, to me, the worst part. But just as the problem is prevalent, it is equally and easily fixable. It simply requires awareness. Next time you feel yourself about to say “that’s so gay,” stop and think: what if it were you being insulted every day?

Sources: New York Times, The Week