Last year I had a conversation with a friend of mine about the two kind of straight people I believe exist in the world. The ones that hate you in your face and those that hate you behind your back. I have really believed this for a long time, although I have had great relationships with a number of straight people. Most of my best friends are straight even though I still harbored this belief.

This sentiment often surfaces when I am going through a hard time. When I am dealing with homophobia in my circle of life. It often raises it’s head when I hear someone say something like “hate the sin and not the sinner” or “we will tolerate, but we won’t support your lifestyle”. These statements often come from people who say that they love you. These “gay friendly straight” people will befriend a gay person who is a neighbor and they will shun their son or daughter when they decide to come out. Homosexuals are acceptable as long as they are a colleague at work or a kid in the neighborhood but not part of the family. This is when the true test comes for the “gay friendly straight person”, when the gay person is blood related.

I have friends that make it hard for me to believe this anymore. I have people in my life who are genuine friends who wouldn’t mind if I was their brother or son. So maybe, just maybe there are more than just two kinds of straight people in this world. Although I am still not completely convinced.