As a GLBT person, do you feel that straight people accept you, or merely tolerate you?

We only tolerate you and your all huge disappointments to your families!

My true friends love me. There's not even the matter of acceptance vs. tolerance. They just love ME. My sexuality isn't even a factor.

My buddies accept me. They're comfortable with me and will defend me and will call out idiotic, bigoted remarks from others. They've definitely moved beyond mere tolerance.

Strangers don't much concern me, other than those that can impact my life in a negative way by their hatred. I don't think we'll be on equal ground any time soon in this country, there is too much hatred and not enough understanding.

Until we get to a good point, acceptance is the best we can hope for. Tolerance is minimal.

I'm straight and I have no problem accepting GLBT. I have experienced my own personal discrimination for having a learning disablity....I know its not the same but I know how it feels like to be put down and denied and bullied. So if people can accept that, then I can accept them no matter what the issue is.

BTW, I have 1 guy bi friend, 2 gay guy pals and I can tell you I don't see anything wrong with it. I accept them for who they are.

I have a friend who told me he was gay. I was very accepting. Just because he changed his sexual orientation did not change who he was to me. On the other hand, a few years after "coming out of the closet," he chose a very dark and unhealthy lifestyle. That made me upset. If he was gay all along, why did he change who he was just because he said it out loud? I began to tolerate him. I no longer liked the person he had become. He finally got help and is now on a better path in life. I now accept him but only because I know he has his self-respect back. You can't accept someone unless they accept themselves.

Interesting.

I think most who I actually tell that I'm gay do accept me. I don't go around announcing I'm gay to the entire world, I don't wear it like a banner...so too I don't tend to surround myself with those who would merely tolerate me.

Well with a few exceptions that I have no control over...such as my partner's mother...she merely tolerates the fact that her daughter is gay and I'm her partner. Other than that, we've been really lucky.

I don't care about sexual orientation. It's so petty to even think about. I am, however less than tolerant of the fact that I have no idea what GLBT stands for.

it depends on the person, I've gotten a number of reaction from distant tolerance, to cold "okay..." to warm acceptance... even the occasional disturbing fascination lol. from the people who matter most to me I've had acceptance. I hurt to have a friend keep telling me its wrong to change my body, and that "god's plan" for me was to be man... but I guess not everyone can understand

I get what you are saying, but why does everyone know about your sexual orientation. And I dont mean that in a bad way. But why do people other than you partner and family have to know that you are GLBT?

I take offense to that as I'm a straight woman and I have several gay friends and I love them like family

I've only ever ran inot a problem once or twice with not being accepted, and both times it came from an uneducated blue collar improper english speaking bad toothed moron.

I think my friends truly accept me, otherwise they wouldn't be my friends.

Of course I don't know whether they only tolerate me, but I believe there are plenty of straight people out there who do really accept us.