Lawrence King and 'Mixed Messages' | Issue Letters | Advocate.com | Advocate.com

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Lawrence King and "Mixed Messages"

I am a 52-year-old gay activist who lives in safe suburban Orange County, Calif. As a young boy, my passion for vintage clothing and my choice of cheerleaders as BFF's certainly marked me as gay. It wasn't until I went to Junior College and found my friends in the theatre department that I came out officially. I then spent years working on AIDS services and have spent the majority of my career in the helping profession. This past month, a young 16-year-old cousin of mine , who lives in a small town in Central California, made it known to his family and his father that he is gay. His father is emotionally abusive and when he is drunk he can be physically abusive. He often refers to my young cousin as faggot and queer. His mother offers no help. There are no organizations in his town that can help. I called Child Protective Services on his behalf recently and was told they would investigate but that there was really nothing they could do. According to the worker, parents have the right to raise their children the way they see fit. It is heartbreaking to know that there is no way out for this young gay boy. He has to suffer emotional abuse until he is 18. That is of course unless his father beats him and the bruises can be documented and then maybe CPS will intervene. It is great that there are hundreds of agencies that will sign a letter to The Advocate regarding "Mixed Messages," but there is not one to intervene and make a difference in the life of this young brave boy. We have a long way to go.

Randy Pesqueira
Garden Grove, Calif.
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