Parents of LGTB, Don't Lose Focus

Parents of LGBT, don't lose focus

Let's stay focused on our job as a parent.

I have joined some LGBT Parents groups and I have been thinking of how needing to protect our children from others has lead us to misunderstand our job as a parent. Yes, there is a lot of hatred against this community, but through history, there has been always hatred against other groups: overweight, disabled, race, religion, you name it, and our children are not the exception. Back in the 80s when the world started to learn about HIV, it was a worldwide earthquake! Take a look at them now, take a look at your LGBT friends, how are they doing now professionally, in their overall lives? Look at Ellen Degeneres, a strong lesbian; she did not have all the support our children have now. They are doing well, because though they had to hide and were terribly judge by society, they also had to build up their character and face many things by themselves, hidden from the society.

Today, I am seeing that by needing them to be accepted by society, we, their parents, back down on rules we would have enforced on our children if they were not LGBT. We, parents, need to be the first ones to stop treating our LGBT children differently if we want society to treat them as equal. We need to stop labeling our own children, casting them out from the society. We need to make our children succeed in their education, to abide by rules in different settings like every other human being. Just think about this: Do you really believe that in the future, when your grownup child gets a job, the boss will put up with a tantrum because they feel they are treated different for being LGBT and get away with it? No matter LGBT or not, no one likes to put up with workers like this, and the worst part, our children will not advance in their lives thanks to our mistake of overprotecting them. We are trying so hard not to be hurt that we are not helping them to get strong. We can read as many books as we want, but no one learns to be strong unless we go through difficulties.

Their future is in our hands, what are you creating out of that child? A strong person ready for life and to fulfill his/her dream, or are you creating and feeding a victim's mind? The fact that they are LGBT doesn't make them less than you, yourself! Are you treating your child as another human being with a lot of potential, or are you cutting their wings off by indulging them and feeding their mentality that they will not be capable of fighting for their own happiness without you? Let's get real, the world is imperfect and there will always be someone who will try to take advantage of someone else, no matter age, race, sex, religion. There will always be bullies, there will be people who will try to undermine us. It is from our side of that story to choose if we will let people drag us down or stand strong. Are you building your child up strong enough to stand by his/her own feet whether you are around or not?

If our children do not learn to stand for their beliefs, their personality, who they are, bullies out there will take advantage of them, and not because they are LGBT, because people are people, there are good and bad, there are helpers and those who just enjoy bothering others. Yes I am a mom that worries about my daughter, but she could have been rejected because she is Hispanic, because she is not fit, because she is smart, or a woman, or someone might not like her personality or the way she smiles, or anything else for that matter. Keep in mind, as we grow older, there will be a time that we are going to be dead, gone, adios! Your child should be strong enough to believe in themselves and live accordingly. Fight for their rights against many. Like any teenager, they have their own age problems where either we need to help them or need to build up their character. On the other hand, teens are smart, and many times they take their “disadvantages” to manipulate us. Didn’t you get away with many things with your parents at that age? Or didn’t they let you? Don’t let your LGBT use this excuse to lose your focus as a parent. We have the obligation to raise strong human beings, for them to have a better future. Don't give in, and more important, don't raise children that people will not respect.