Homophobia: still the rule, not an anomaly. posted by Richard Seymour

Watching the alleged 'controversy' over two Liberal Democrat contenders for the leadership of their party, one is struck by how much homophobia really persists under the surface. I can't believe that the whisphering campaign about Simon 'ban-tube-strikes' Hughes is really about the fact that he didn't come out openly and admit that he had slept with men when asked. For one thing, given the scale of homophobia in this society, it would be perfectly understandable if someone wanted to keep that secret. Hughes must have rightly calculated that the public can handle anonymously gay politicians, but a gay leader is still subtly beyond the pale. For another, those who are so sanctimoniously demanding that public figures confess their guilt - and that's exactly the flavour of it - forget something crucial: what business is it of yours?

And the answer to that is generally some flannel about "judgement" - what does this say about Hughes' judgement? What does it say about Mr Oaten's "judgement" that he went off with rent boys and didn't expect to be recognised (not an unreasonable assumption)? I saw a news anchor on C4 yesterday suggesting that Liberal Democrats might just want to "put a question mark next to Simon Hughes' judgement" after this admission. This strikes me as a silly public school euphemism - what is actually meant by it is that someone who dares to have secrets, to live, as it were, as if there was still such a thing as privacy, as if the age of the confessional had not destroyed any such notion, is not quite top drawer.

Now, there is an awful lot of schtick from certain quarters about "yes, but we're not as bad as those dark-skinned countries - look at China, Sudan, Iran etc". Others still insist that Islam is more homophobic than Christianity and Judaism, a remarkably dim assertion that nevertheless issues from intelligent people who ought to know better (if you want to think about this seriously, consider the former Chief Rabbi's call for the genetic elimination of homosexuality). The unstated assumption is the old colonial one - that people from "backward" countries are less Enlightened, cultured and civilised than those in the West. This gesture manages to both apologise for and minimise homophobia in the West and introduce an insidious racism into the discussion. Let's take it head on: the homophobic laws in many countries, such as the ones mentioned, are much worse than those in, say, the US. And the UK has formally allowed 'gay marriage' and repealed that execrable Section 28. But this was not a gift of liberal and enlightened societies: it is the result of decades of struggle, of risk, of resisting homophobic violence. It is an ongoing struggle, because homophobia persists in the culture, gay pubs can still be bricked or blown up, homosexual men can still be beaten to death, and because reactionary leaders like George W Bush and his temporary ally in the Vatican continue to insist that gays are less equal than everyone else.

Now, consider this: US aligned with Iran in anti-gay vote. Forget, if you like, that the scary tell is supposed to be that the US would align with Iran (as if the US doesn't have enough of its own homophobia to be getting on with). What it illustrates is that homophobia is still very much a 'ruling idea' in the world, and that this is not the preserve of various official enemies. There is a curious ideological movement here, too: when a form of bigotry becomes disreputable, the majority disavow it and transfer it onto a minority. Hence, when gay rights or womens' liberation make inroads, pompous white liberals and even reactionaries pat themselves on the back for having been obliged to concede the terrain (in public, at least) and start to complain about the homophobia and misogyny in 'black youth culture' or Islam or "backward" areas of the world. And one is not racist to behave like this, of course, because "I've got black friends and they're great fun, I just don't like this political correctness" etc.

I modestly suggest that the struggle for gay rights is far too important to be left to those whose sole point of consistency is they are apologists for the West, and certainly too crucial to be imbricated with the naked and unashamed prejudice of some groups (like Galha) which divides the movement and demeans the struggle.