"Heterophobia" - The irrational fear or aversion to heterosexual people.
There are a limited number of hate crimes against heterosexual people by homosexual people based on sexual orientation, but there have been a few instances. In heavily LGBT neighborhoods there have been some isolated cases of harassment against straight people.
Alternate use of the term:
"Heterophobia" has also been used by more conservative LGBT circles who are opposed to the traditional gay rights platform. They use the term to imply that extending equal rights to LGBT people is tantamount to discrimination against heterosexual people.
The term has been used by conservative circles who feel that when more liberal groups target them by calling them homophobic based on their positions that they can counter that liberal LGBT groups are being so called "heterophobic".
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2 comments:
I'm glad you brought up this word, because I believe there really IS a heterophobia running through certain elements of the gay community (at least in the Manhattan area of NYC ), and it also extends to judging people on simply being hetero-appearing. I've known homosexual men who've been given the cold shoulder as far as being involved in gay events, etc, because their mannerisms, personality, etc., are too "straight-type". Of course this pales beside effeminate men getting poor treatment from heterosexuals (and some homosexuals), but it's still a nasty bigotry.
Thanks for your comment Joey. It is true that this exists and does rear its ugly head from time to time. I remember reading about some episode in P-Town where a woman with a baby stroller was harassed and called a breeder for walking in a "gayborhood". After all the discrimination we have faced we should not be harassing others but I guess sometimes people are just in so much pain and desperate to get back at the society that has shunned us.
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