Men holding hands in the Street

[girlfriend44]

Saw two men walking along hand in hand earlier and I admired their bravery and thought hope nobody starts on them.
Have seen women before but not men?
Do you think they were brave. Would you be scared for them if they were your sons?
Brave men. Perhaps it's something we will see more of in the future?

One of my gay colleagues had someone threaten to kick 'the fucking gay' out of him not so long ago. At work. And others laughed.

Homophobia is alive and well unfortunately and so yes I worry for my gay friends and colleagues that are going to be targeted. We talk about it sometimes and they worry too, and those in couples experience it still.

So no, it's not the 1980's or even the 1960's, it's 2022 and gay marriage is legal and celebrated - and yet people still get targeted because they are gay. Being snarky and clever about someone talking about it won't change that.

I've lived in some of the roughest places in the north of England and, even there, I would not have been surprised to see this, though it wasn't common.

While homophobia unquestionably still exists I think it's, happily, very much rarer than when I was a child and two blokes holding hands is pretty normal.

This would be a totally normal sight where I live so it's surprising to me that it's even been noticed let alone posted about. I grew up somewhere quite rural but even there its more diverse these days and I don't it would be a problem

It must not be that normal or no one would be noticing it at all. I was out the other day and quite a few guys were holding hands. I did t necessarily think they were brave but I did rbi k it was good that society had accepted it and they felt able to do it.

I live in a big city. There are still loads of bigoted, unaccepting men around looking for anything and anyone they arent comfortable with or don't approve of, who would happily beat up an openly gay couple. Some areas of the city it would just be really dangerous to hold hands. It's really sad but it's a fact. If it were my son and his partner (hypothetical son as I don't have one), yes id be worried. Especially on a Fri and sat night with hordes of beered up twats in the streets. My friend's son was beaten up because he's exceptionally tall and muscly and it was seen as a challenge to try take down the big guy. Another friends son was mugged for no apparent reason whatsoever.

I live in n Wales.
What is usual:
Smack heads
Road men (or wannabies)
Crashes on the A55

What is not:
Men/ women holding hands in the street
Poc

Yes but they're not gay. And that's clear

This is a weird thread to start. I've never thought that and I see it regularly despite living in what some may say is quite a Conservative area.

Are you kidding? Its 2022. I see this regularly and have done for years - certainly while I was at university in a city 15 years ago.

I've seen it a few times and felt a bit shamed that I noticed it rather than just find it normal. Live and let live tho!

@StoneofDestiny is that minimizing how gay people are often threatened with their lives or even murdered for holding hands in public, supposed to be hilarious or something?

I live in Brighton. It's hardly unusual. And certainly not worth commentating on. Why should it be?

Just checked with my gay couple friends who live in vauchall. They’d hold hands in vauxhall but there are lots of areas in London especially say on Friday night out for drinks because they’d be worried about getting beaten up. Anecdotally their lesbian friends are often even more reluctant to be sue they get so many disgusting comments frem about it

i think that all the virtue signalers on here loudly proclaiming how cool they are with it are doing a real
disservice to gay people who this is still a genuine issue for

When I lived in london my apartment building had a lovely gay couple below us (they've since got married). My coworker married her wife a couple of summers ago. now living in a small village there's a gay couple about 3 doors down from me. It's just life/ordinary people and no one is the least interested tbh

lots of areas in London where they wouldn’t hold hands

Ds is 21 and still holds my hand. It's just habit.

We are a family of handholders tho, I wouldn't automatically assume two people of the same sex holding hands were a couple tho. I know in some parts of the world friends holding hands is common.

Ps apologies if I'm perceived as dismissing the risk of violence as I'm sure there are still loads of haters out there just more noting that I've seen this plenty, I hope it's a sign of things improving.

Many of the posters on thread remind me of the sort of people who say ‘I don’t see colour’. They think they’re being really non-racist, but all they’re doing is completely denying the lived experience of many people. Only white people can say they ‘don’t see colour’, because they’re never been on the receiving end of discrimination due to the colour of their skin.

My DB and his husband never hold hands, or display any sort of of physical affection, in public.

You’re right OP - is is brave and if one of them were my son, I’d absolutely worry for their safety.

It's perfectly normal where I live, I wouldn't think anything of it and probably wouldn't even notice.

Not too long ago a man was brutally murdered in Trafalgar Square after walking hand in hand with another man; and two lesbians attacked on a London bus.
Yes, both in London.
All those posters saying it's no big deal should note that while it's no big deal for most of us, there are still ignorant, violent homophobes around.

I wouldn't automatically assume two people of the same sex holding hands were a couple tho.

I can't think of any fully grown male adults who would walk down the road holding hands if they weren't gay...

Depends where you are and all those people suggesting it’s totally common and everybody should feel safe to do it are completely naive.

As a gay woman, I would hold hands with my wife in most parts of London, for example. But we were in a part of the NW a while back (very close to where I grew up) and wouldn’t have done it in a million years.

The person who lives in Brighton and says it’s perfectly common can’t seriously think that because it happens in Brighton it happens everywhere else in the U.K.!

Where do you live, OP? The 1950's?

cocopogo (and others), you sound delightful

not everyone lives in brighton, london or some other middle class, hipster enclave- yes, it can be a big deal elsewhere to see two men holding hands- not bad, just unusual

but i think you know what the op meant- just want to score some righteous points, eh?- or are you so bigoted as to think everyone has the same locale as you

Picture it: The year is 2022; same-sex couples can openly display affection in public, even in small, rural towns, and nobody bats an eyelid.