Uniform Diversity.

Back in the day, when movies and television portrayed gay people, it was usually that certain type of cliche person with regard to how straight people saw us, thus the industry created the "stereotype" that they now claim is prejudice if someone thinks of gay people in that way. Finally however the industry got behind us, partly due to the fact that probably every third person they worked with belongs to the lgbt community and partly because they could see it was the right thing to do. To give credit, I think the big and little screen is the reason for the massive shift in a positive way regarding how western countries view the lgbt community. .............................................. Having said that I have been noticing something with all the talk about diversity in films, television etc. Sometimes the hypocrisy from the film industry is unbelievable, they lecture us (the public) with films and shows about racism and prejudice, then we all saw what happens when it comes to award shows or events, they are white as a snow storm. It is going better I think lately but only because they were embarrassed into making changes. .............................................. This had me thinking about the gay community, a lot of movies and tv shows have gay characters in them, it's wonderful that many of the characters are not there solely as a gay character but as a full member with all the experiences as the rest of the cast; however I see a slight problem. Most characters are played by really attractive straight people. I think it's the industry's way of saying, "it's okay if you are gay, as long as you look, sound, and act like a straight person". I know a lot of lesbians (A LOT) and they range from almost burly man to cute Ellen Page type but I have yet to meet any swimsuit model types that are often on screen. Same with the guys, yes there are some guys that look like (insert hunk name here) but we all know most gay men don't come close. Nothing wrong with that, it's okay not to be a hockey player, racecar driving surgeon who is a weekend lumberjack/secret agent that saves the world. You can relax and go right on lovingly tending your flowers while reading poetry because in truth there are many many like you! ............................................... I understood why in the past they would use guys like Patrick Swayze and Wesley Snips in To Wong Foo (22 years ago) because it was a clever way to get people comfortable with lgbt issues, plus it's a business and they need to make money. They should take note however that there are beloved gay characters on screen today that are just like the real characters we meet in every day life. We all want to see attractive actors but we also want to have a connection with people who are supposed to be portraying us. I think it becomes a problem when people start to feel a disconnect with the person who is supposed to represent them, we don't all have to look like Captain America.