Who we are
Being gay should not come with a required political affiliation
by Don Webber, President Log Cabin Republicans of Charlotte Published January 11, 2026
Opinion: Since 2015, Identity Politics Has Narrowed What It Means to Be Gay
Over the past decade, something troubling has taken root in the gay community. Beginning around 2015, as identity politics surged into the mainstream, a new expectation emerged: that there is a single “correct” way to be gay. This shift didn’t empower us. It narrowed us. It isolated those who didn’t conform. And it weakened the very diversity our community once celebrated.
The rise of ideological uniformity has pushed the gay community toward becoming a political monolith where dissent is treated as betrayal. Independent thought—once a hallmark of LGBTQ resilience—is now policed with an intensity that would have shocked earlier generations.
It’s time to push back.
Conservative gays exist. Our numbers are growing. And we’re speaking up—not to divide the community, but to protect it from being used as a political instrument for agendas that don’t represent all of us.
What began decades ago as a movement for equal treatment under the law has, in recent years, been overtaken by activists demanding ideological conformity. Since 2015 especially, fringe ideological positions have been packaged as mandatory beliefs. The message is clear: to be “authentically gay,” one must adopt an entire slate of left‑wing political views. That expectation isn’t just misguided—it’s deeply divisive.
Many conservative gay Americans simply don’t see sexuality as the defining feature of our identity. We reject the idea that our political views should be dictated by who we love. We are more than a demographic category. We are individuals with values, convictions, and lived experiences that don’t fit neatly into a political script.
The idea of the “normal gay” has gained traction precisely because so many of us feel alienated by the ideological rigidity that took hold in the mid‑2010s. We are proud to be gay, and equally proud to be pro‑America, pro‑family, supportive of law and order, and committed to economic freedom. We want what most Americans want: safety, opportunity, and a country that rewards hard work—not perpetual grievance.
In an article, The Rise of the Normal Gay, it references a time when J.D. Vance said he and Donald Trump could win the “normal gay guy vote,” it wasn’t offensive - the phrase “normal gay” isn’t a slur. It’s a stand for independence, common sense, and love of country. It voiced what many of us have quietly felt for years: that we are part of a forgotten middle - proud to be gay, but also proud to be pro-America, pro-family, pro-law and order, and in favor of economic freedom. It was refreshing to see the acknowledgment of a truth many of us have quietly lived for years: we are part of a forgotten middle - patriotic, grounded, and unwilling to be defined by identity politics.
Predictably, the left lashed out - not with thoughtful rebuttals, but with insults and attempts to shame. We’ve seen this pattern before: anyone who steps out of line or refuses to parrot the talking points is branded self-hating or a traitor.
In my view, we should be defined by our character and values - not by skin color, age, gender, race, or sexual orientation, and certainly not by the rigid expectations of identity politics. The gay community is not a monolith. It never has been. And the more we embrace ideological diversity, the stronger and more authentic we become.