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Students saw a gay couple kiss in front of kids, and the students got mad for all the right reasons
Let's "kick the ick" out of our public discourse.
06.12.14
I've spoken often about the "ick" factor — the visceral reaction many have to the sight of something unfamiliar, like two men kissing. When I was growing up, the reaction toward interracial couples was similar, and that disgust over white/non-white intimacy was used to justify laws against interracial marriage.
Many use their irrational discomfort over gay intimacy to justify discrimination. This video, shot in a restaurant in Mississippi, illustrates that all too clearly, underscoring deep social and religious divides over this question. But there is cause, too, for hope — especially among young people. The ick is fading away, as it inevitably will. So watch and ask yourself, "Do I have a bit of the 'ick' in me?"