They hate us because we can get married?

Just when we think there's progress...

"Three Sacramento men appear[ed] in court Monday charged with beating a gay man just hours after the California Supreme Court overturned the state ban on same-sex marriage." [365Gay]

[Update: Thank God that the young man that was the survivor of the beating did not sustain serious enough injuries to be hospitalized.] While the investigation still goes on to find out if the beating was connected to the supreme court ruling, this is still frightening. This is scary (for many reasons and) because it reminds me that in spite of the progress that is being made and the many places and people that do respect diversity and people's dignity, that there are still those who are taught that sometimes hate is okay.

Whether it's in simple (oftentimes less obvious) ways like through use of language or if it's explicitly being taught, hate and prejudice still get passed on. I believe that hate comes from fear and I'd like to think that the more we build connections and share our experiences then we can lessen that fear and help to bring about change. But, it's hard to take those risks when people are being beaten for just being who they are.

While hate crimes were slightly down last in 2006 (last year records were available), there will still 246 incidents against the LGBT community. And thank God that we live in the Bay Area where homosexuality is relatively accepted...