My Son Is Gay.
It’s a thought that crosses many parents’ minds at least once while pregnant or while raising a child: could my son or daughter be gay?
This question might not matter as much as it once did, though certainly a family’s beliefs, not to mention the town, state, or country a family is from, could heavily impact the importance of whether or not one member is heterosexual.
When it comes to gay rights, we’ve come very far in just a short time in America. But this story about a father and his gay son doesn’t take place in 2015, it takes place in the 1950s, back when even a rumor that someone was gay could have had disastrous consequences.
Source: StoryCorps
Start the slideshow below to learn more about this heartwarming tale of the most important thing a father could teach his gay son, and then SHARE the love.
It Gets Better
Source: StoryCorps
StoryCorps is an organization dedicated to recording and sharing the stories of others.
The non-profit organization was founded in 2002 with a mission to keep track of the countless oral histories of everyday Americans, with a goal to “provide people of all backgrounds and beliefs with the opportunity to record, share and preserve the stories of our lives.”
Recently, as part of their OutLoud initiative, StoryCorps partnered with the It Gets Better Project that helps inspired positive change and inspiration for the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender communities.
One story turned into a beautiful memoir of one gay teen and his father Washington state in the 1950s.
Identity
Source: StoryCorps
This OutLoud installment is narrated by Patrick Haggerty, who grew up on a dairy farm in Washington in the 1950s.
The story begins by explaining that Patrick started realizing during his teenage years that he was gay, but he did his best to obscure the fact, especially around his older brothers and his father.
One day, however, Patrick’s father Charles came to his school to see him perform in an assembly, including a costume with makeup and glitter.
Patrick explains how his dad, a dairy farmer, showed up in his dirty overalls and boots, and just how embarrassed he was as a boy to have the entire school see his dad like that. Patrick ran around the halls of school avoiding his dad, and after a confrontation that afternoon, Charles used the situation to teach his son the most important lesson he could muster.
“Look, everybody knows I’m a dairy farmer. This is who I am […] Now how about you?”
Don’t Sneak
Source: StoryCorps
Patrick was still unsure about his identity and orientation, but Charles knew better.
“Now I’m gonna’ tell you something today, and you might not know what to think of it now, but you’re going to remember when you’re an adult: don’t sneak. Because if you sneak like you did today, it means you think you’re doing the wrong thing.”
Patrick explains in the video, “And of all the things a father in 1959 could have told his gay son, my father tells me to be proud of myself and not sneak.”
I love this story, and I think all parents with non-heterosexual children should hear it at least once, if not a hundred times. Why does it matter who somebody likes? Shouldn’t your priority as a parent to make sure your child is happy and loved?
Watch the Video
Like our Videos...
Here’s the heartwarming video. I’ve already watched it about four times, and the message still rings true: don’t sneak. Be yourself. Love yourself, and you will be loved in return.
I especially love Haggerty’s final statement on the matter, “I had the patron saint of dads for sissies, and no, I didn’t know it at the time, but I know it now.”