Abstract Quote by Dan Savage
“We've had a culture war roaring away, and the kinds of people who want to abuse and discriminate against gay people who are adults can't really lay their hands on us unless they want to be gay-bashers and go to jail. They abuse us from afar and in the abstract, they abuse us with checkbooks and ballots, but their kids go to school on Monday morning. And there's a gay kid. And they feel they have license to beat that gay kid up in a way that I don't think they did when I was in school. I think it's gotten worse.”
About This Quote
Source Interview: Podcast "Savage Love", 2015
Cultural hostility toward gay adults manifests in indirect attacks, yet the real harm appears when it targets vulnerable youth in schools.
In simple terms: Adults' hate harms kids.
Key Takeaway
Protect youth from hate.
Themes
civil rights
LGBTQ+
violence
Mood
urgent
empathetic
Type
advocacy
call to action
When to use this quote
- school environments
- online platforms
- political campaigns
- family discussions
- legal actions
Key Concepts
hate speech
bullying
policy
education
community safety
Questions to Reflect On
- What steps can schools take to protect LGBTQ+ students?
- How can allies intervene safely?
A Different Perspective
Legal repercussions may not stop personal bias.
![“After the war in Afghanistan, Anna [Wintour, editor of Vogue], deciding to save the world one hair-roller at a time, thought the best way to help the women in this beleaguered country was to start a small beauty school in Kabul, where aid workers could get their roots done. Vanity Fair, edited by…” quote by Myrna Blyth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/928/myrna-blyth-73900_afghanistan_after-the-war-in-afghanistan-anna-wintou_1609244.jpg)
![“What a pleasure to hear Michael Savage backtalk to Hillary [Clinton]. You know, there is such hypocrisy with her. I didn't start out as a Clinton basher; I started out hopeful years ago. What she's doing here is merely damage control because her drugs have come under criticism.” quote by Peter Breggin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/f31/peter-breggin-22000_bashers_what-a-pleasure-to-hear-michael-savage-b_1591306.jpg)
![“And that really captures the difference for the bullied straight kid versus the bullied gay kid, is that the bullied straight kid goes home to a shoulder to cry on and support and can talk freely about his experience at school and why he's being bullied. [...] And I couldn't go home and open up to…” quote by Dan Savage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/f23/dan-savage-2880_being-bullied_and-that-really-captures-the-difference_58927.jpg)
![“I'm one of those gay people who's constantly reminded of how fortunate I am to live now and not to be Ennis and Jack [from Brokeback Mountain] or whatever - not that I'd mind being Ennis for half an hour. But it's been so much worse recently. It still is terrible. In Iran, they're hanging gay…” quote by Dan Savage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/31f/dan-savage-2880_addict_i-m-one-of-those-gay-people-who-s-consta_100210.jpg)
