About three years ago, my son James, who had recently moved from the DC area to San Francisco, wrote to my wife and I to tell us that he was gay. As this had been suspected for some time, the actual revelation did not shock us as much as could have been expected. It did, however, explain a few things about my son, such as his leaving a very responsible position in a challenging field in the DC area for a less important job in San Francisco - the latter city being more tolerant towards homosexuals.

I should make clear that my son is an overall wonderful individual. He attended college at the University of Virginia and graduated with majors in aerospace engineering and computer science, and he has obtained a pilot's license, as he always was in love with airplanes. He is a very intelligent and well rounded professional. Nobody would ever guess his sexual orientation from talking or interacting with him.

One of the first things my wife and I realized was how little we knew about homosexuality and the second thing was that, because of the prevalent homophobia in society, our son could be in danger.

Our son could be the subject of discrimination, persecution, ridicule and verbal and physical abuse.

So, on his recommendation, we joined the local affiliate of PFLAG (Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays). This organization provides, most importantly a) support groups where you can meet and exchange views and experiences with parents, families and friends and with gays and lesbians, b) books and other publications to learn about different aspects of homosexuality, and c) seminars and conferences with experts (psychologists, medical doctors, research scientists, politicians, etc.), to keep informed on current issues affecting homosexuals and their families.

I would like to share with you some of the things that I have learned and experienced, with the expectation that this message will fall on understanding minds. To those of you out there who still ridicule homosexuals, I hope that this will help you to be more tolerant.

• The homosexuals are our sons, daughters, nephews, nieces, grand children, brothers, sisters, aunts or uncles, even mothers or fathers, who by whatever unknown factors were born with a sexual orientation towards persons of the same sex.
• The homosexuals are of all races, colors and nationalities, rich and poor, educated or uneducated; i.e., lawyers, accountants, architects, doctors, engineers, politicians, hairdressers, plumbers, teachers, economists and diplomats, clerics and priests, athletes, actors and actresses, soldiers, sailors and marines, singers and artists. I read some place that homosexuals could comprise ten percent of the population; it could be, considering that, although a lot of them are out, most of them are still in the closet.
• Homosexuals include famous people, such as: Sophocles, Euripides, Socrates, Aristotle, Alexander the Great, Julius Caesar, Richard the Lion Hearted, Botticelli, Leonardo da Vinci, Francis Bacon, Peter the Great, Alexander von Humboldt, Hans Christian Andersen, Horatio Alger, Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky, Oscar Wilde, Jean Cocteau, Bill Tilden, Martina Navratilova, Dag Hammarskjold, Tennessee Williams, David Bowie, Elton John.
• Homosexuals are not made by their upbringing, or by abusing or neglecting parents. My wife and I raised five children under the same conditions and circumstances, one is homosexual, the other four are heterosexual.
• Homosexuals are not recruited nor are subject to change. Homosexuality is not a disease, and therefore it could not be cured. People are born with such sexual orientation and some understand it and accept it sooner and better than others.
• Realizing and accepting one's homosexuality is a tough thing to do, and either this by itself or the rejection by family, especially by parents, have resulted in deaths by suicide of a number of teenagers.
• Exhibitionists, such as seen in gay parades, are the minority within the homosexual community, and most act this way in frustration. Unfortunately they are the ones shown in the communications media and are used by extremist groups to support anti-gay propaganda. Homosexuals do not seek special treatment; all they want is equal rights and treatment, forming part of a society that is tolerant and respectful.

I appreciate the forum of "IN TOUCH" to be able to communicate this topic to all of you. I hope I have "touched" your intelligent minds to erase a little of the homophobia that I know is part of the Latin American culture, but which step by step, as happens with all misconceptions, will disappear in the future.