Generation Y got an unwelcome romp through the spotlight last week courtesy of Miley Cyrus’ risqué “Video Music Awards” performance. While Cyrus’ suggestive set raised important debates surrounding misogyny and racism, it also left some posing the age-old “what is happening to our country?” question.
While Cyrus has been a strong supporter of LGBT equality, the star — barely out of her teenage years spent solely in the spotlight — hardly encapsulates the future of American ideals.
Instead, if you’re looking for a bright spot in which to place your hopes for the next generation, take Katie Traynor, a middle-school student in Springettsbury Township, Central Pennsylvania.
Earlier this month, the 13-year-old penned a letter to the editor in the York Daily Record titled “Focus on benefits of same-sex marriage.”
Traynor goes on to dissect the marriage-equality debate from a number of stances. Traynor, who is being raised as a Methodist but acknowledged the failings in some modern Biblical interpretations, points out that the constitution guarantees freedom of religion and that, as some religions celebrate same-sex relationships, the religious angle should not be a factor in the marriage discussion.
She cleverly elects to not “waste my time explaining what the government is doing wrong,” but instead focuses on the positives of marriage equality, choosing to look at the benefits from a societal, rather than individual, standpoint. Traynor cites elevated adoption rates and economic boosts from marriage equality, as well as the potential for lowering suicide rates among LGBT youth.
The last point exemplifies how much Traynor, at just 13, understands about the LGBT-rights movement.
Marriage equality is certainly needed for both financial and logistical purposes, but having governmental affirmation, as Traynor points out, is integral in both community- and self-validation. While LGBT equality has made unimaginable strides in the past few years, LGBT youth still grapple with institutionalized homophobia; putting a major dent in governmental discrimination against LGBT people puts those young people one step closer to recognizing their own value and worth.
While Traynor has likely seen anti-LGBT classroom bullying, she is frank that at her age she has yet to experience the full gamut of the issues involved in the marriage-equality debate — but contends that shouldn’t matter.
“As a 13-year-old girl, there will be many things that I just won’t understand right now. But answer me this: Why must sexuality define us as human beings?” Traynor asked.
While Cyrus’ twerking does little to address that question, Traynor argues that Americans should instead be defined by their commitment to societal betterment — a commitment that should recognize that discrimination of any form hurts all Americans.
“If we all can come together as a group, we can fight to change the law that defies our rights, not just for those who need it, but for everybody,” she said. “It is our job as citizens in a democracy to fight for what we believe in. It just takes one person to take the first step.”
Thank you, Katie, for taking that step.