Parents support homosexual children at Queer festival

Christian protesters gathering in front of Daehan Gate, the main gate of Deoksu Palace, rally against sexual minorities during the Queer Culture Festival held at Seoul Square in central Seoul, Saturday. / Korea Times Photo by Hong In-kee

By Kim Se-jeong

The Korea Queer Culture Festival on Saturday in Seoul had a welcome new addition — parents who stand by their gay and lesbian children.

Members of the Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG) Korea opened a booth along with 100 others at Seoul Square in central Seoul, giving out guidebooks for parents of gay and lesbian children.

The parents also gave out hugs to festival participants for 180 minutes.

“It was supposed to be a brief event. We were surprised that so many showed up for a hug. Many wept in my arms. I am glad that I did that,” said Ji-in, the mother of a son who came out as gay three years ago.

“I was in shock,” she said about her initial reaction. “I did a lot of reading about homosexuality. I know one mother who read more than 1,000 research papers on the topic.”

She said the deeper she studied, the more she was convinced there was nothing she could do to change him.

She decided to change her attitude and support her son.

Statistics helped her change her mind. According to the Korea Youth Counseling and Welfare Institute, 47.4 percent of LGBTs answered that they have attempted suicide.

Members of the Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbian and Gays (PFLAG) Korea march to support their children during the Queer festival in Seoul, Saturday. / Courtesy of PFLAG Korea

A research team at San Francisco State University said homosexual teenagers attempt suicide eight times more frequently than heterosexuals.

“I love my son for who he is,” Ji-in said.

The group reiterates unity among parents and encourages parents to reach out to their children.

“They are already going through so much because of prejudice and discrimination due to their sexual identity,” the mother said. “If I decide to reject him, who would support him? We need to unite to build a society where my son will have a better life.”

The group meets once a month in Seoul. Visit www.pflagkorea.org for more information about the group.

According to the organizer, the festival drew almost 50,000 participants, who rallied in downtown Seoul in support of the rights of sexual minorities. Among the participants were university students from all over Korea. European countries set up booths at the festival, disseminating information about LGBT issues in their countries and voicing their support for LGBT rights in Korea.

The festival was opposed by Christian protesters who also waged a competing rally against the festival in front of Deoksu Palace.