Grandfather Writes Letter To His Daughter After She Kicks Out His Gay Grandson

[Lydia Leftcoast]

79. When I was volunteering with an agency that worked with street kids in Portland,

I learned that about 1/3 of them had been disowned by their parents for being gay. They were called "the throwaways" in contrast to the "runaways," who were usually fleeing abuse.

When the agency tried to reunite them with their parents, the parents would say that they could come back only if they stopped being gay. One couple said that their son could come home if he joined the football team, which struck everyone as unbelievably clueless, especially since he looked more like a gymnast than a football player.

If there's no relative or friend to take them in, being on the streets can be a death sentence. Almost all underage street kids get into drugs or the sex trade, either because it's the only way they can make money or because it's a way to numb themselves. As a result, they get STDs, including AIDS, overdose on bad drugs, and are subject to violent assaults, even murder. Only a little more than half survive to adulthood without dying or being incarcerated.