It’s not about the T-shirt

SEPT 28 — I found it interesting that the Education Ministry took a parent-teacher association’s guideline on how to spot a gay or lesbian and endorsed it. The ministry subsequently denied it did any such thing.

It was funnier before when Islamic authorities said women who wore men’s clothes were butch and could be “charged.”

It is clear neither of these groups have a “gaydar” so I’d like to educate them on the subject.

Yes, we gay men do wear V-neck T-shirts, whether the RM10 ones on promotion at Uniqlo, or RM40 types from Giordano, or sometimes the RM150 numbers from Armani Exchange. If not, we just buy from the bundle shops at Danau Kota.

We also wear turtlenecks, sarongs, flip-flops, khakis, slim-fitted shirts, jeans and even sneakers.

Just like our heterosexual counterparts, we enjoy the gym as well. We roll our eyes when references are made to hot chicks by our straight gym partners who misconstrue our reaction as us being “religious conservatives.” Yes, this actually happened to me until I told the guy my sexual orientation over lunch five months later.

Some of us prefer hanging out at clubs, others prefer quiet time being couch potatoes at home while there’s the Adonis bunch who think waking up in the morning for a 10km cycling tour is perfectly normal.

We are technologically adept... think Alan Turing, the famously gay mathematician and codebreaker who gave birth to artificial intelligence.

We join protests and causes linked to religion, environmental issues, politics, welfare, and even sports.

Some of us find politics fascinating, others prefer discussing how hot Prince Harry looks naked.

Personally I prefer sitting at a mamak restaurant in Shah Alam arguing over moral consequentialism while enjoying an iced Nescafe.

Some of us drive fancy cars, while others depend on public transport, and still others prefer walking.

One thing I’ve noticed is that we seem to be able to form quick bonds with women in what can only be described as camaraderie.

We have never been accused of statutory rape or getting a woman pregnant, unless we were forced into marriage and then continually badgered to have kids.

We have, however, been found guilty of being bitchy, sarcastic, cynical and sometimes downright mean.

We do carry large bags similar to women’s tote bags, containing a bottle of cologne, a change of shirt, a mobile phone plus charger, wet wipes or bottles of hand sanitisers, an iPad or a notebook, and a pair of earphones or headphones.

And some gays may or may not have a pair of real or fake Louboutin heels hidden somewhere at home or in their cars.

You see, just like women, we tend to be practical.

So if you’ve read through this and think you may or may not be gay... you don’t have to worry.

Gays don’t care. We really don’t care if you’re straight, bisexual, questioning, asexual and such because we don’t see it as a problem.

It does not make us more or less immoral to be ourselves, contrary to what some people think.

Being discriminated against for being lesbian, gay, bisexual or even transgender is the leitmotif of our community but we will endure.

As the old Malay Muslim saying goes, the prayers of the downtrodden are the ones to be answered.

So let us do that then, and pray for a more acceptable future.

Amen.

* The views expressed here are the personal opinion of the columnist.