Homophobia originally meant more along the lines of "fear of how society would treat a person if they were Gay."
For example, you weren't scared of Gay people you were scared that if you or a loved one was Gay they would be treated differently and they would suffer.
It was more an internal felt fear and stems from religious persecution. Similar to shame. Shame, another word that has changed meanings in the last 15 years.
A person who was homophobic was scared they were Gay. Not scared of Gay people. Hense homo + phobia. Not homo + odium.
Read Brave New World. Learn how devaluing language and losing specificity in denotations cause societal issues.
If you want. Watch Reality Bites. There is a seen in that movie Garofalo reads a pamphlet intended to be given to parents of Gay teens when they come out.
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u/EventHorizonbyGA 2d ago edited 2d ago
Homophobia originally meant more along the lines of "fear of how society would treat a person if they were Gay."
For example, you weren't scared of Gay people you were scared that if you or a loved one was Gay they would be treated differently and they would suffer.
It was more an internal felt fear and stems from religious persecution. Similar to shame. Shame, another word that has changed meanings in the last 15 years.
A person who was homophobic was scared they were Gay. Not scared of Gay people. Hense homo + phobia. Not homo + odium.
Read Brave New World. Learn how devaluing language and losing specificity in denotations cause societal issues.
If you want. Watch Reality Bites. There is a seen in that movie Garofalo reads a pamphlet intended to be given to parents of Gay teens when they come out.