English 2.9 – Wide Reading

Text style: Short text   Written by: Macklemore  Produced by: Ryan Lewis Featuring: Mary Lambert

Background info/brief summary of the text

When I was in the third grade, I thought that I was gay

‘Cause I could draw, my uncle was, and I kept my room straight

I told my mom, tears rushing down my face

She’s like, “Ben, you’ve loved girls since before Pre-K!”

Trippin’, yeah I guess she had a point, didn’t she?

A bunch of stereotypes all in my head

I remember doing the math like, “Yeah, I’m good at little league.”

A preconceived idea of what it all meant

For those that like the same sex had the characteristics

The right-wing conservatives think it’s a decision

And you can be cured with some treatment and religion

Man-made, rewiring of a predisposition

Playing God, aw nah, here we go

America the brave still fears what we don’t know

And “God loves all his children” is somehow forgotten

But we paraphrase a book written thirty-five hundred years ago

I don’t know

And I can’t change, even if I tried

Even if I wanted to

And I can’t change, even if I tried

Even if I wanted to

My love, my love, my love

She keeps me warm

She keeps me warm

She keeps me warm

She keeps me warm

If I was gay, I would think hip-hop hates me

Have you read the YouTube comments lately?

“Man, that’s gay” gets dropped on the daily

We’ve become so numb to what we’re saying

Our culture founded from oppression

Yet we don’t have acceptance for ’em

Call each other faggots behind the keys of a message board

A word rooted in hate, yet our genre still ignores it

“Gay” is synonymous with the lesser

It’s the same hate that’s caused wars from religion

Gender to skin color, the complexion of your pigment

The same fight that led people to walk-outs and sit-ins

It’s human rights for everybody, there is no difference

Live on and be yourself

When I was at church they taught me something else

If you preach hate at the service, those words aren’t anointed

That holy water that you soak in has been poisoned

When everyone else is more comfortable remaining voiceless

Rather than fighting for humans that have had their rights stolen

I might not be the same, but that’s not important

No freedom ’til we’re equal, damn right I support it

And I can’t change, even if I tried

Even if I wanted to

My love, my love, my love

She keeps me warm

She keeps me warm

She keeps me warm

She keeps me warm

We press play, don’t press pause: progress, march on!

With a veil over our eyes, we turn our back on the cause

‘Til the day that my uncles can be united by law

Kids are walking ’round the hallway

Plagued by a pain in their heart

A world so hateful, some would rather die than be who they are

And a certificate on paper isn’t gonna solve it all

But it’s a damn good place to start

No law’s gonna change us, we have to change us

Whatever god you believe in, we come from the same one

Strip away the fear, underneath it’s all the same love

About time that we raised up!

And I can’t change, even if I tried

Even if I wanted to

And I can’t change, even if I tried

Even if I wanted to

My love, my love, my love

She keeps me warm

She keeps me warm

She keeps me warm

She keeps me warm

Love is patient

Love is kind

Love is patient

Love is kind (not crying on Sundays)

Love is patient (not crying on Sundays)

Love is kind (not crying on Sundays)

Love is patient (not crying on Sundays)

Love is kind (not crying on Sundays)

Love is patient (not crying on Sundays)

Love is kind (not crying on Sundays)

Love is patient

Love is kind

Personal response

Same Love is a song written by Macklemore tackling the issues of prejudice of sexual orientation. When I first heard it, I was not only attracted to the chords and the melody that Mary Lambert sings, I found the lyrical content to be very interesting. After reading through the lyrics I discovered a powerful piece of writing that represented such an important topic for our generation. The acceptance of diversity of sexuality and gender identity. Just listening to the song gives a clear idea of how Macklemore feels about homophobia, raises important issues within the LGBTQI+ community and makes you question prejudice regarding sexual orientation is something present in you. When delving further into the lyrics you can see particular ideas and opinions that Macklemore has wanted to express.

From reading through the lyrics of this song I reaffirmed how serious the issues around homophobia are. It is something I am very against and I do take pride in supporting the LGBTQI+ community however I have recognised that I am not always actively conscious or considerate of that community. I can confidently say that I would always step in and defend someone against homophobia but that support isn’t something I carry with me all day. 

“If I was gay, I would think hip-hop hates me

Have you read the YouTube comments lately?

“Man, that’s gay” gets dropped on the daily”

These lines help establish the gravity of this issue. Your sexual orientation, in my opinion, shouldn’t be a weight on your shoulders that you have to wear everyday but that is what is has become. It seems that if you are gay you are actively choosing to make your life more difficult. “Gay” is synonymous with the lesser”. Everything that’s related to having a different sexual orientation also holds a negative connotation and is used to represent something that  is “lesser”. Having this chain of thoughts made me reflect on how I would feel if I was in this position. Like I mentioned, I support the community and equality among different sexual orientations but I am not conscious of it every minute of the day. This is in contrast to the huge amounts of people whose sexual orientation is placed on them like a badge of inferiority. I have come to realise that the weight of this issue, specifically in my hometown, isn’t in the extreme acts of homophobia, of course these moments are shocking and should  be taken into serious consideration. The true weight of homophobia that effects gay people everyday is in the underlying idea that people of a different sexual orientation are lesser and they are made to feel inferior. From looking over these lyrics I have recognised a privilege that I obtain purely because of my sexual orientation, being able to remain unaffected and overlook the weight of comments such as “that’s gay” or using “faggot” as a term to insult someone. People use these terms and speak like this everyday and I barely notice it. When it is noticed or pointed out people turn and blame society because it’s just a word that everyone uses and they don’t actually mean it. I find it strange that “gay” is still commonly used so offensively when there are so many people actively trying to support the community. It’s just something that has been so drilled into everyone’s brains that it has become a normal term the problem is the word was created from hate therefore when used carelessly it still has hate attached to it. People who claim to support the gay community (such as myself) fail to call out the inappropriate use of the word and in some cases use it themself. From looking over these lines and contemplating their meaning I think that’s an issue that needs solving.

 I personally love and relate to this song because it’s a straight man defending the LGBTQI+ community. It shows that you don’t have to identify under the queer umbrella to support the people that are. It’s a common misperception that if you defend or show support that community, then you have to be LGBTQI+ yourself. I think this a particularly prevalent attitude, especially in a small town where there is a very small population of people from the queer community. The people that are queer stand out significantly more than they would in a big city consequently the people that support them also get recognised. I personally think that supporting that community should be something everybody is a part of and the way Macklemore speaks in this song reflects that attitude. “When everyone else is more comfortable remaining voiceless. Rather than fighting for humans that have had their rights stolen” “No freedom till we’re equal damn right I support it”. These lines represent the idea that we don’t deserve freedom unless we support freedom and equality for everyone no matter their sexuality or gender identity. It also made me consider how much support I put into the LGBTQI community. I am confident in my views that support equality amongst sexuality but when looking into these lines of the song I did contemplate how I would act if I was put in a situation where I had to defend the community. Questioning myself in this situation helped me solidify my opinion and views towards supporting the community and allowed me to recognise the importance of giving that support.

You don’t have to be blatantly homophobic to be considered someone who has prejudice against people of a different sexual orientation. Macklemore’s lyrics opened my eyes up to the idea that we can subconsciously hold preconceived judgement against gay people as he discusses stereotyping. “When I was in the third grade, I thought that I was gay. Cause I could draw, my uncle was, and I kept my room straight”. Here he examines the different things that contribute to a stereotpye of being gay. “A bunch of stereotypes all in my head 

I remember doing the math like, “Yeah, I’m good at little league.” A preconceived idea of what it all meant”. At such a young age (third grade) Macklemore had already recognised different components of gay stereotypes. This made me contemplate the huge impact that societal views have on young children. In third grade you are 8 – 9 years old, you are in your prime time for learning and are carefully developing a sense of what you value. Currently in our society we have managed to label so many things to particular stereotypes that children are growing up with preconceived judgement of what certain sexualities look like hammered into their subconscious. I love gay people, I have gay friends and I strongly support equality of sexual identities but I will acknowledge that I definitely have preconceived judgement of what having a different sexuality looks like. In my eyes the “gay” stereotypes revolve around being flamboyant, liking Beyonce, possibly doing your make-up e.t.c. The stereotypes of being “lesbian” are being butch, manly, maybe having short hair e.t.c. These are not characteristics I have created myself, from seeing the way different sexual orientations are represented in the media and through society I have picked up on these preconceived judgements and they are now ingrained in my mind. Therefore although some people don’t intend on being homophobic they subconsciously are. 

Having this awareness made me realise how hard it would to be gay and feel as if you had to conform to a particular stereotype just because of your sexual orientation. Majority of people have been brought up in a society that presents stereotypical gay people in the way I have explained above. If everybody has that particular idea subliminally of what a gay person is supposed to be like it must mentally effect or create restrictions for someone who is gay. As a heterosexual person I have the privilege of being free of confinements to do with my sexual orientation – I may be subject to confinements from other stereotypes but they are not as intense or set in stone as the stereotpyes that revolve around being a gay person. 

I also liked the way Macklemore chose not to reflect having a different sexual orientation as something that was a choice. “And I can’t change, even if I tried, even if I wanted to”. He intentionally represented sexual identity as something that is independent to you and powerful energy that can’t be changed. I personally like this because it represents the statement ‘love is love’. I feel that it if you truly love someone then you have the right to continue loving them, if they’re the same sex as you it’s not just a mistake and you cannot change that feeling. 

“The right-wing conservatives think it’s a decision. And you can be cured with some treatment and religion. Man-made, rewiring of a predisposition. Playing God”

These lines create an emotional response from me as it’s an attitude / a hate that I often see represented in the media. If referencing the bible homosexuality technically is a sin therefore gay people are so commonly made to feel as if they’re a error and they need to be cured. The emotional response created from these lines was anger as I don’t believe should ever be made to feel like they’re an issue. If referencing another part of the bible it makes a statement about forgiveness and how God sees everyone in shadows and in light and he will forgive people for their sins. I dont think Gay people are at fault for loving who they love and even if that is your belief I think it’s important to understand forgiveness. To me these lines represent that open minded attitude and are an important part of the song.