Eight words were all it took to kick off a lively Reddit conversation in the r/AskGayMen forum. That prompt: “What are the main advantages of being gay?”As you might expect, some users in the thread took a hard turn toward misogyny. (You might be surprised by the number of “Ew, women, boo, hiss!” comments.) Other commenters, meanwhile, failed to take our trans brethren into account—posting, for example, unqualified “no risk of unexpected pregnancy” comments.But there were many well-articulated, thought-provoking additions to the thread, many of which we’ve included below (after retouching them for readability, of course).“Largely being exempt from stereotypical gender roles.
Straight men are under a lot of pressure to do/not do/like/not like certain things because ‘that’s what men do.’ Gay men get to mostly opt out of that.
It’s easier for us to choose stereotypically feminine jobs and hobbies if we want, and to be more in tune with our emotions.”“If you are a man, you are somehow obligated to get a beautiful girlfriend, marry her, have a bunch of kids, have a great job, earn a lot of money, buy a house, etc.
Overall, a lot of demands from a family and society on men shoulders. When you are gay, most of them disappear. You are free to do whatever you want.”“I feel like there’s lower family pressure to settle down and have kids.