Act 1 Reflection

In Act 1 of The Laramie Project by Moises Kaufman, we learned much about how people felt about homosexuality in their community. Many people accepted the fact that there were homosexuals but would rather avoid them. Others didn't care if there were homosexuals or not. However, being a homosexual meant that people's biases could harm them internally and externally.

In the life of a homosexual in the 90's, the world was turned against gays ad lesbians. Even the people who weren't against homosexuality were often homophobic. "And she later told me that there were other lesbians that she knew who wouldn't be seen with me. That I would irreparably taint them, that just to be see with me could be a problem" (Connolly 22). They didn't want to be marked as lesbians because they would be seperated from society. And there were people who were very much against homosexuality. They would put the importance of their own personal beliefs in front of real values such as morals, family, and equality. "And they brought me into their room and told me that if I did the scene, that they would not come to see me in the competition. Because they believed that it was wrong-that homosexuality is wrong-they felt that strongly about it that they didn't want to come see their son do probably the most important thing he'd done to that point in his life" (Schultz 12). It's terrifying how much power a bias can have over someone's decisions and bias is one of the biggest reasons that homosexuals are discriminated against. Other people display their hate against gays through physical harm. For example, Matthew Shepherd was beaten to death on a fence for the simple fact that he was gay. The attackers bias forced them to only care that he was a homosexual. People should be viewed for who they are and what they do instead of being discriminated against over something they were born with. Act 1 helps to understand the real world struggles that some homosexuals go through to this day.