I used the word “homophobia” earlier today and hurt some feelings. That was not my intent. But trying to discuss civil rights for gays and lesbians without addressing homophobia is like trying to talk about civil rights for people of color without addressing racism. Until a person realizes that their arguments for witholding rights from others is based on an assumed superiority, then he or she will never question their right to sit in judgment. As long as whites were judging people of color as if the European story were normative, most people of color were doomed to second class citizenship.
So those Christians who want to discriminate against GLBT persons but not have that oppression called a prejudice, are asking us to accept a dehumanizing view of homosexual persons to even have the conversation. We are not judging others to point out the difference between holding an opinion, and interfering in another’s life. And just finding a Bible verse to back up our prejudices is not excuse. To awaken to our own prejudice and to help others see theirs is a great gift. As long as any of us think the rest of humanity is supposed to look and act like us, we will be surrounded by a world of inferiors.