Vanessa, my experiences (and my opinions) are very old, and probably due for an overhaul.

Even though I'm pessimistic about how quickly and easily people change, I believe that your optimism is not unfounded, and it's likely to be far more effective than my pessimism. I'm sorry if I made you sad--I was angry at people who refuse to change, certainly not at your faith and hope for the future.

I think the key word, which you use in your bio, is "Family." If we can reach just one person within a bigoted family, we have a chance to change the whole family. And if we can change a family, we can start to change the larger group that the family belongs to.

The love and commitment of people like you will see us through. As Dr. King so beautifully observed, "The arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice."

Thank you for reading through my rant and responding compassionately. And for pushing that arc forward.