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Wayne Self’s Essays

On Belief, Talk is Cheep, Stories are Gold


Pi Patel: So which story do you prefer?
Writer: The one with the tiger. That’s the better story.
Pi Patel: 

by Wayne Self

The tragic nightclub fire in Santa Maria, Brazil this weekend is one in a long, painful history of such incidents. As of this writing, 233 are known to have lost their lives, and it...Read More »

MLK: Part of the Problem

by Wayne Self

Among the many inspiring, tear-inducing, beautiful speeches and photos memorializing Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. today, one is apt to find this video:

Read More »

Telling the (Queer) Christmas Story

by Wayne Self

Merry Christmas!*

*Wait, let me explain!

I’ve just finished a long journey with the man to whom I am betrothed but not married. We travelled over barren...Read More »

Armageddon Used to It

by Wayne Self

They say children play out their anxieties. For example, psychologists tell us not to be surprised to see children exposed to the violence in Newtown playing...Read More »

Keeping the Darkness at Bay

by Wayne Self

“Saruman believes it is only great power that can hold evil in check, but that is not what I have found. I found it is...Read More »

Introducing Captain Saddleback: Defender of the Defended

Click here or on the image for full size!

Tell Rick Warren to Condemn the Ugandan Bill

by Wayne Self

Dear friends, please do what you can to help ensure that the recipient of this letter actually sees it, perhaps many times. Please share it widely. In addition, you can:

  • PLEASE sign the petition below. 
  • Tweet this...Read More »

Big Win, but No Warm Fuzzies: A Post-Election Note from the Editor

by Wayne Self

This is not gloating; it’s me talking about my feelings, which is probably even worse.

You know, I’d actually resolved not to take a public position in this election, but then that darn 47%...Read More »

Don't De-Friend Me; Just Don't Vote

The run-up to an important election can be a trying time for friendships, especially for LGBTQ people who feel personally attacked when their friends vote for anti-equality candidates. Some of us, like blogger Kergan Edwards-Stout, find...Read More »

Spirit Week Wrap-Up with Hugo Award-Winner David Gerrold

by David Gerrold and Wayne Self

David Gerrold is the author of "The Trouble With Tribbles" episode of Star Trek, and the Hugo and Nebula award-winning story, "The Martian Child" which was made into an inadequately heart-warming...Read More »

“Leave or Die, Fags” Hate Speech, Harsh Truth

by Wayne Self

Joshua Harrison and Jeremy Jeffers are the Texas couple who made national news after their home was vandalized with a death threat on October 1 (see photo).

I had a chance to...Read More »

Homo-torious: Coming Out with the Booed Gay Soldier

by Wayne Self

Captain Stephen Hill is the gay soldier deployed to Iraq who was booed on national TV at one of last year’s Republican Presidential Primary debates.

He’d been invited to ask a question for the debates...Read More »

In Memory, in Pity

by Wayne Self, with Joe Karpowicz and Zach McCallum

Each week, Carlos Delgado would unfold a little lace doily and place it on the baby grand piano, smoothing it with wrinkled, spotted hands.

He would pause for a...Read More »

The Chick Fellatio Ep. IV: A New Hope? Nope.

Dear Chicago Alderman Joe Moreno,

Emily Dickinson said, “Hope is the thing with feathers.” She never dealt with Chick-fil-A.

You got it right when you called their latest statement to Mike Huckabee “disturbing.” After...Read More »

The Facts on Chick-fil-A's Harmful Giving

by Wayne Self

Here are the facts on Chick-fil-A’s harmful giving.

On the Family Research Council and criminalization of same-gender sexual activity:

From the Southern Poverty Law Center’s website. (Some may attack the credibility of the...Read More »

Chick-Fil-A finally speaks!

Friday evening, Chick-fil-A (CFA) CEO Dan Cathy issued this statement to Mike Huckabee:

“There continues to be erroneous implications in the media that Chick-fil-A changed our practices and priorities in order to obtain permission for a new restaurant in...Read More »

The Chick Fellatio Ep. III: Talk Is Cheep

UPDATE – Sept 21, 2012: Friday evening, Chick-fil-A (CFA) CEO Dan Cathy issued this statement to Mike Huckabee:

“There continues to be erroneous implications in the media that Chick-fil-A changed our practices and priorities in order to obtain permission...Read More »

Will Americans Let Romney Talk About Their Mamas?

“I’m Wayne’s Mom and I approved this message!”

“There are 47 percent of the people who will vote for the president no matter what. All right, there are 47 percent who are with him, who are dependent...Read More »

Rumsfeld & Robertson: In Tragedy, Violence, or Despair, Blaming the Victim Must Stop

Today, only hours after a deadly attack on the U.S. Embassy in Libya, Donald Rumsfeld took the ghoulish step of blaming murdered state department Ambassador Chris Stevens for the violence done against him. Rumsfeld claimed...Read More »

Akin, RNC Comments and Polices Remind Us: Abortion is a Gay Issue

Akin, RNC Comments and Policies Remind Us: Abortion is a Gay Issue
by Wayne Self

Missouri Congressman Todd Akin’s claim last week that women were unlikely to get pregnant from “legitimate rape” prompted a whirlwind...Read More »

Mirror Anarchy: How the FRC Shooting Confused WaPo's Milbank

(Click here to read a streamlined version of this piece at the Huffington Post!)

The project of persuasion on LGBT issues is so fraught with difficulty that it’s no wonder so many people abandon it.

Even...Read More »

Gaybash Cannonball: So, Mr. Fischer, about that Underground Railroad...

MEMO TO:
Bryan Fischer
Director of Issues Analysis
American Family Association,

Dear Mr. Fischer,

It was with great and growing hope that I read your recent tweet, which said, in part:

“…we need an Underground Railroad to deliver innocent...Read More »

Aesop to the Right: Why I Believe Bristol Palin

In response to my Chick-Fil-A essay, I got a lot of letters kind of like this one.

“Thought I’d humbly give you some of my conservative Christian perspectives. My support of...Read More »

The Chick Fellatio Ep. II: To Get to the Other Side

(A previous post about Chick-Fil-A, called “Chick Fellatio”, went viral, sparking substantial discussion and generating over 1 Million page views. This post is about some of the responses to that post. To read the previous post first,

(**Response to this post has been overwhelming, generating over 1 Million page views and a great deal of positive discussion. To see the follow-ups to this post, click here.**)

This post is all I have...Read More »