“You know when you walk into a men’s clothes store, and there is loads of t-shirts with half naked girls on? Why is there no t-shirts with half naked guys on for homosexuals?” Nowadays, it is impossible to go shopping for a men’s t-shirt, without seeing a picture of a half-naked girl on it. Now I have nothing against the beauty of the female body. I am gay, but I am still extremely appreciative of how beautiful the feminine form is. Perhaps nowadays there is too much exploitation of the feminine form, this post appreciates that point but it is not the main topic. The issue I have with these shirts, is there is no representation for homosexual males. Have you ever gone into a men’s clothing store and seen a t-shirt with a picture of a topless man printed on it? Or a man in his underwear? Because I for one have not. These t-shirts are not only contributing to the over-sexualization of women, but by actually wearing them I feel that heterosexual males are almost forcing a claim to their sexuality. Almost like a bravado, a “Look at me i’m straight I wear a t-shirt with a half naked girl on it” attitude. It’s animalistic. In terms of the over-sexualization of women, which we knows is a problem that a lot of people are struggling with in today’s day and age, quite simply, these types of t-shirts should not exist. Because it just provides another platform for exploitation. In which case, if these items of clothing didn’t exist, then it would eradicate one platform for exploitation, and in turn may even begin to eradicate the culture that is forcing the attitude that homosexuality is wrong. However, referring to my previous point, Have you ever gone into a men’s clothing store and seen a t-shirt with a picture of a topless man printed on it? If it is socially acceptable for heterosexual males to wear a statement, almost proving to the rest of the world that they are straight, then why can’t homosexual males? Why can’t I go into a shop, and pick up a t-shirt with a topless male on it and be proud of my sexuality? You shouldn’t have to label yourself, you should just be able to exist and live life however you want too, but in a culture that is so obsessed with labels and boundaries, give me something i can wear as a label that I can be proud to wear. Give me a topless man on a t-shirt so that I can walk around like heterosexual males, whilst sporting an image of a half-nude female, do and say “Look world, this is who I am and this is what I like” Fashion itself is an art form, and if we feel like we cannot express ourselves comfortably in everyday life, where else to turn but art? And if the art we want to express ourselves through is fashion, has boundaries such as, no t-shirts that smack you in the face with a homosexual sexual preference, where else is there to turn? Art should know no boundaries. Fashion should know no boundaries. So why do these boundaries still exist? If people want to express that they are proud of their sexuality, be it heterosexual, homosexual, bi-sexual whatever, then by all means wear these t-shirts and express yourself. You were born this way. But do not limit free expression to only one aspect of sexuality. Free will for all, or free will for none. Homophobia is decreasing, I feel. Thankfully, I have never really experienced any homophobic attacks but I am not stupid. I know it exists. You only have to google “Russia Homosexuals” and you are inundated with stories and images of violent, disturbing, and quite frankly disgusting homophobic acts. Homophobia is STILL AN ISSUE IN TODAY’S DAY AN AGE. An age where an image of a pop-star smoking cannabis can spread to every corner of the globe in a matter of minutes, homophobia still exists. It truly baffles me. It baffles me how an entire world can almost turn a blind eye to these problems. We seem to have this “Yeah it exists but I can’t do anything about it” attitude. It’s crazy. The homophobia that is occurring in Russia, to me is a modern day apartheid. The apartheid segregated certain members of society for something they had no control over (their skin colour) and these people were subjected to similar abuse that homosexuals are experiencing in Russia TODAY. Homosexual males are being segregated from the rest of society for something that they can’t control. Their sexual preference. And what is being done? The homosexual apartheid is happening right now. Art can change people’s opinions. Personally I view it as the most powerful medium for changing opinions in the world. Art provokes emotion which can ignite the flame for passion that someone may need to change the world. If we let the fact that homosexuals can’t express themselves by having a picture of a half-naked man on their t-shirt continue, then we are just contributing to this problem. If you are a heterosexual male and you wear t-shirts with images of the beautiful female form printed all over it, then in my opinion you are almost buying into the attitude that it is “Okay to be straight, but not to be gay”. I pray for the day I can walk into a shop, and either see t-shirts that aren’t relying on the over sexualization of females to get gain profit, all over the place. Or I can purchase a t-shirt with a half-naked man printed all over it, so i can wear it and shove in societies face that I am gay and I am proud. If heterosexuals are going to wear a t-shirt so obviously stating their sexuality, then i’ll do the exact same. #Fashion #Ladygaga #MotherMonster #littlemonsters #Artpop #LGBT #BeKindBeBrave #MonsterStyle #bornthisway #art #love #GagaTalk #Selfies #gaga #BoldImpact #BOLDIMPACT