Friday, March 13, 2009

Preach, Kelly, preach!

"American Idol's" first winner, Kelly Clarkson, has had enough of a certain rumor about her.

"Just because I'm single and don't date a lot, that doesn't make me a lesbian," she pronounced.

I think it's a shame it's come to that -- she's a singer, and her sexual orientation has nothing to do with her ability -- but I'm happy Kelly is so outspoken. Should she have to talk about her dating life? No. But I'm glad she did.

Whether she wants to be or not, Kelly Clarkson is a role model. In a time where we have Rihanna going back to an abusive boyfriend and Paris Hilton going through men like Kleenex, it's heartening to see a young, successful woman who doesn't need a romantic relationship to define her.

Kelly also is representative of a societal shift: staying single longer, by choice. It's a decision that still makes you suspect. There must be something wrong with you if you're alone. You're ugly, or you're secretly gay, or you have Issues -- any of a number of reasons that would make you a dating leper. Many people still find it hard to believe that someone who is attractive and accomplished might choose to remain unattached.

Said one commenter on the story CharlotteObserver.com has about Clarkson: "I think society just has a problem with single people being just that. Single. It's not an affliction. I've had so many people say to me 'why don't YOU have a bf or a husband?' Didn't know I needed one? Men are good for two things in my mind, sex & buying things. Doesn't make me a lesbian. People just need to get over it and start minding their own business."

Well, until they do, it's a good thing someone prominent like Kelly is setting people straight.

6 comments:

Anonymous said...

One day, the "sex and buying things" person will be the lady who curses at the kids on their walk home from school because they "won't leave her alone".

Anonymous said...

Why is everyone so hellbent on giving Clarkson such a hard time?

She's a lesbian, she's pregnant, she's fat. Geez. I think she looks great, I'd gladly have sex with her.. and she certainly has more going for her than most of the Idol season winners.

Anonymous said...

First, Good for Kelly. Second, Good for Anonymous posters 1:19 and 1:43. Third, "Men are good for sex and buying things" - where's the outrage? What if a man said, "Women are only good for sex and cooking things"...?

Anonymous said...

Because that's all we're good at - and some can't even get the sex part right.

If a man talks in the woods and there's not a woman around to hear him, he's still wrong.

:-p

Anonymous said...

What this still illustrates sadly, is that society at large still views those of us who are gay as something to be ashamed of and wrong instead of just being who we are like straights. So much so that it has to be denied like she was accused of a crime.

Gee Kelly you forgot the "not that there's anything wrong with that" line.

Anonymous said...

It seems our society does not have a good network set up for singles to meet. I know this is going to sound really old-fashioned but the art of "courtship" is rarely found. In a nutshell, Courtship is when two people meet, sparks and chemistry are there, and at that point agree they will see each other exclusively with the goal of really getting to know each other to see if they both agree that marriage would work between the two. No one night stands, no I'll sleep with you a few times then move on to the next one. I also feel that in Charlotte (and probably other places also) single people have a stigma and incorrect misperception attached to them i.e. what is wrong with you, etc. Even the church has brushed singles aside. There are, what, 900 churches in Charlotte? Only a handful advertise that they have a "Single Adult Ministry". I as a single woman believe pursuing marriage is an honorable thing. I am not quite comfortable yet with the on-line dating thing, but I have heard many single women say the guys on the dating sites are just after sex, and the guys say the women on the dating sites are psycho. Oh, what a dilemna we singles have!