Modified post. I can't really make a thread but I will talk about provincial gayfolk.
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Gay folks who grow up in small towns are a special and under-heralded breed. When I emerged from my adolescent homophobia and became an ally, I quickly discovered the lush flower bed of gay hoser culture.
I remember the gay hosers who came out to themselves in the 1970s. Including:
-Butch acting Waynes (ie. from Wayne's World) who had zero affectation at all.
-Sensitive lads who couldn't harm a feather fending for themselves against the pervasive threat of assault using only their wits
-The Dr. Frank N. Furter clone who attended small-town high and never got a mark on him, but maybe got a Mark on him.
-Future poets, actors, farmtown lesbians... all moths to a flame...
And they all come to Toronto for Pride