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Loading ...Watkins: Gay Latino Americans are ‘coming of age’
Perez Hilton is Hollywood’s biggest gossip queen.
He’s made a name for himself so well that he is not just any blogger. He’s an all-around celebrity.
CNN recently reported on the relationship between Perez Hilton’s sexuality and nationality.It is no secret that Perez Hilton is gay. But it may be a surprise to some that the controversial blogger is Latino.
The Latino community is often known for being devout Catholics and has had a reputation for being largely homophobic. So it’s amazing to see a proud Cuban-American who is also a proud gay activist.
“Hilton is a Latino pioneer. He is one of the first Latino public figures in the U.S. to be openly gay. While Latinos have broken ground on the U.S. Supreme Court, in Hollywood and in professional sports, gay Latinos in the nation’s public arena remain largely invisible.
“Hilton says deep-seated homophobia within the Latino community has forced many gay Latinos to go underground, but attitudes are shifting.”
Gay Latinos aren’t something the MSM usually reports on- although Perez might not be the most attractive candidate for Gay Latino of the Year, it’s great for gay Latinos to have a public face. Kudos to CNN.
Selena Watkins is a 365gay.com editorial intern
Bad story. Latinos are more than just Catholic and homophobic. Latinos are also Mormon (like me), JW’s, evangelicals, and Episcopalians, plus belonging to many other religions.
Plus, I’ve known many straight Latinos who are not homophobic.
Next time 365gay wants to do a story about Latino/as, ask a Latino/a to do it first.
Also, why are we using Perez Hilton as a rep. for LGBT Latino/as? There are many others that are better examples.
why do people find the need to anoint people spokesmodels of out community or any community. Perez Hilton has not attempted to do so.
“The Latino community is often known for being devout Catholics and has had a reputation for being largely homophobic.” – What tripe! What an utter poor excuse for reporting!
Selena WATKINS is guilty of making the same generalizations about Latinos that people who haven’t bothered to learn about us make.
I hope that her writing skills improve when she enters the eighth grade.
Guillermo Diaz is a better example for gay Latinos – he’s smart, talented, sexy and unapologetic about his sexual orientation.
If Perez is the best example of a gay Latino around, no wonder so many want to stay in the closet. Hopefully someone with a sense of decency will step up to the plate and take over that role.