• yemmly@lemmy.world
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    5 months ago

    Let’s make sure everyone knows the stories of queer heroes, like Alan Turing, a titan of computer science, information theory, and cryptography whose efforts helped save the world at one of its darkest hours.

    …who was then so severely persecuted because he was gay that he wound up in an early grave.

    • Flying Squid@lemmy.world
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      5 months ago

      How do you do that properly without talking about the ways in which he was persecuted, the thing you think should not be given attention to?

      • yemmly@lemmy.world
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        5 months ago

        I absolutely think everyone should know that Turing was betrayed by scoundrels which led to his arrest for the crime of being himself (it was illegal to be gay at that time in the UK). After that he couldn’t get a job, despite being the best ever in the world at his job. After that, he fell into hopelessness and took his own life.

        • Flying Squid@lemmy.world
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          5 months ago

          That was far from the only way Turing was persecuted.

          It sounds like you need to learn more about Turing. Either that or you think that was the only type of persecution that mattered. I hope the former.

          • yemmly@lemmy.world
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            5 months ago

            I didn’t mean to imply that those were the only acts of persecution committed against him.

            And about the flag pisser: What he did was wrong. It was a hate crime. It is appropriate that he is punished for it. Peoples’ outrage about it is justified.

            • Flying Squid@lemmy.world
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              5 months ago

              What he did was wrong. It was a hate crime. It is appropriate that he is punished for it. Peoples’ outrage about it is justified.

              Very few people here on Lemmy would disagree with you. The problem is that there are a lot of people in this world who would. And those are the people who need to be reached by explaining that yes, this is a hate crime and yes, you will get punished for it no matter how you feel about queer people.

              Because honestly, you’ll never succeed in getting rid of all the hate. Just ask any person of color. But you sure as hell can let people know what happens if you fuck with someone who is gay or trans or black or Muslim or whatever because of who they are.

              • yemmly@lemmy.world
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                5 months ago

                What I hear you saying is that we need to make an example out of him to deter other asshats from acting on their hate. I buy that.

                Also, I think people like him do these kinds of things because they want to hurt people. I want to deny them that satisfaction, to the extent it is possible.

                • Flying Squid@lemmy.world
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                  5 months ago

                  Yes, that is exactly what I am saying. Examples must be made even if it gives a bigot like this attention. I wish there were some way to deny them that attention, but I don’t see how to do both at the same time… although not using his name (which the article did do) might be a good compromise.

                  Anyway, I think we’re basically in agreement.