Then I looked for a rock to go hide under. In the s and s, there was a saying recited by men that helped them decide which ear to pierce. The eye-opening revelation I had last week is that when people such as my former student see an earring in my left ear, they think I believe that a pierced right ear and homosexuality is wrong.
The reason I wanted to find a rock to go hide under during my conversation with the young lady is that her mother, a good friend of mine, happens to be gay. I have many friends who are gay, and I have even officiated same-sex weddings for several of them—while wearing my left earring. The ugly truth is that when I got my ear pierced all those years ago, I was homophobic.
My choice to pierce my left ear was deliberate. I was never the least bit racist, but for reasons that only sound like weak excuses now, I never felt bad about telling gay jokes or repeating homophobic slurs when I was a young man. During this period, there was no real social or legal cover for individuals who fell under this category.
A lot of people lived in fear for their families, jobs, properties and even their own lives. It was not uncommon to find people being physically attacked the moment they were discovered to be gay.
The need for some sort of secrecy led to innovations as regards their lifestyles. Usually, people who belonged to this category would come together in secret bars and local parks in the dark hours of the night and they usually used subtle means to let people know they were gay. Very soon, the phrase spread like wildfire through America in a time when piercing was just beginning to gain ground. Piercing of the body was for a long time not what was generally accepted by all, it was mostly seen on rock stars.
For a while, body piercing was even seen as an act of rebellion and with the gradual introduction of the concept, piercing of one part of the body was soon seen as being gay. In some places, the idea of the piercing of one side of the body as being gay was reversed as the left ear was the signifier.
Other parts saw the piercing of both parts of the ear as being synonymous with being trans or bi. Soon after, the original phrase was soon lost and people began to forget which ear was the real one even as piercing became more popular. Also, with an increase in acceptance of gay rights by the law and society, there were fewer reasons for people to hide their identities. Back in the days, the whole idea of the right ear being symbolic of being gay was one that was widely accepted.
It was one of those gossips one heard and believed without trying to confirm. It was so strong that soon it became a widely held belief nation-wide. For us to understand the whole right ear being the gay earthing , it is important we take a walk down to history lane. Ages back, wearing earrings symbolized several things among which is not sexuality.
There is the misconception that only queer men wear earrings and also on a particular ear lobe to show they identify as being such. The hip-hop world and also other genres have come to show us that straight men can also wear earrings on either ear and no own will call them gay. For example, in America and Australia, when you wore your earring on the left ear, you were considered gay.
Across the pond, the reverse is the same. However, that was the case in the earlier times before the s, and things changed. It was considered rather embarrassing if not terrifying for a straight man to get pierced in the wrong ear as it sent the wrong message. However, there is a prevailing consensus in some circles nowadays that if you want to show your straight, you get your left ear pierced.
Those in the rap world, along with bikers and pirates, took on the left ear to show that they are straight. On the other hand, when asked, a lot of gay men will say that ear piercings as a way to identify them is outdated and thus should not be taken seriously.
Even so, those who wear their earrings on the right have to put up with the prevailing perception that people know they are gay. There are many reasons why women find men with earrings attractive. One of the main reasons is that the earrings help men look confident.
Some women believe that a man who wears an earring feels confident in his masculinity because he has other ways to prove it than just a rejection of the jewelry. The ear most homosexuals get pierce more often than not is the left ear, hence its reputation as the Gay ear. It, therefore, suffices to say that when someone who is a heterosexual is piercing their left ear, it simply means that they are getting their gay ear pierced. But in , there are far fewer people wearing the cross as a subversive act, and many more wearing it as a purely aesthetic one.
Would a straight guy have an earring in both ears? Most guys will ask why they would wear an earring in one ear only while they have two ears. Some women like guys who have earrings, while some women hate it. Through the years among women, earrings are a symbol of womanhood and a sign of identification.
Women are known to wear them since ancient times. The earlobe is associated with financial stability and social status.
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