gay culture

In Parts I, II, and III, you discovered that your children are second language learners when it comes to the rich idiomatic language of your gay culture. Have you begun your child's Gay Language immersion yet? If not, don't delay too much longer. Admittedly there are no workbooks at Barnes & Noble. There is no after-school Gay Language Program. And so far there are no gay language tutors out there. You’ll have to do it yourself. But if you don't, you could pay a price.
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Every year, the multicultural committees of countless schools around our nation toil September through April to plan, promote, and execute a successful celebration of ethnic pride and diversity. Indian parents bake puri. Hispanic parents make rice and beans. Japanese parents prepare California rolls. Italian parents serve pasta. African American parents fry chicken. And the Anglo parents eat well for once.

Sadly, the formula is getting a little tired. So here’s a modest gay parent’s proposal to spice up the celebration. This year, convince your school to hold a “No Culture Left Behind” multi-culti extravaganza presided over by families of African, Indian, Hispanic, Asian, Euro trash and–new this year—gay parents.

In Part I and Part II, we saw that gay idioms present various challenges for your straight children. But mastering them offers big payoffs too.

In Part I, we learned that your straight children are second language learners when it comes to the language of your gay heritage, and we learned how hard it is to master the idioms of a second language.

In this part, we’ll look at another obstacle your children face—and that is developmental readiness.