Rights

In talking about my project with people, the question often comes up of, "So, what do you want to see happen for these people" and my answer remains an uncomfortable: "It's not about what I want", but that they should have the legal freedom to work it out for themselves.

One of the big issues taken against the international 'gay rights' debate is that it's a form of cultural imperialism wherein the West imposes not only this binary hetero-homo system (which even I don't believe in), but claims authority over concepts of love, marriage, and intimacy as well: that touch is always sexual, that marriage is always about romantic love, that making families and children is simply a personal endeavor engaged in for it's own sake.

I often find myself in the position of wondering whether I'm being culturally sensitive or just supporting mechanisms of repression. Rather than targeting individual policies though, the broader issue that's raised here is how we set about defining universal human rights - a momentous project in the history of civilization, but one that's understandably riddled with difficulties.

Here's a quick link to a video worth another look: