I say this with multiple underlying caveats, but there are social aspects of being gay that give me personal freedoms many straight men haven’t embraced. For the ones who associate certain healthy bonding and emotional development behaviors with being gay and effeminate, they have to deal with that baggage that I personally am not weighed down by.

They want to think of me as gay for knowing and continually learning how to take care of my mental health and foster meaningful, healthy relationships in ways that would likely benefit them? Well, I am gay, and I’m doing pretty well with my life both superficially and substantively.