As the #ToMyUnbornChild hashtag trend swept Twitter, most messages were that of happy childhoods, fond memories, and promising love. But within days, the trend took a decidedly negative turn as the hashtag became the subject of hate towards lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender children. Within the last month, a public service announcement featured on YouTube has emerged to combat hate and prejudice against LGBTs.
Writer and director Charlotte Moore explains, “It’s easy to dehumanize hate speech online because we’ve gotten so used to seeing it. We tell ourselves that it’s the product of trolls, of random, anonymous strangers. Except they’re not. They’re real people. Many of them will be parents. And some of their children will be gay.”
Some vehemently anti-gay tweets included, “If you so much think about being a homosexual I’ll put a bullet through your damn skull,” “If you’re gay, I’ll kill you,” “U bet not be gay. Because I will hang u at the first sign of gayness,” and “Being a fag is not acceptable in my family.”
Moore added, “Whenever you believe life begins, I hope we can all agree: life is essential, and rare, and precious. We can’t stop anyone from having kids. But we can resolve to stop this toxic cycle.”
