Growing up 35 minutes away from the Roller Coaster Capital of the World is one of the coolest things ever. I love spending my Friday evenings on some of the most famous coasters around the globe. I love seeing hundreds of people from all over flock to the park in awe (even if they do make the lines a million times longer). I love taking photos for excited families who pose with Snoopy and in front of the Millennium Force. And most of all, I love being able to tell others how Cedar Point was a major part of my childhood.
What I don't love is how Cedar Point is honoring Father's Day and Pride Day at the same time.
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I would first like to say that I have and always will support the gay community. I was devastated by the tragedy in Orlando and I'm enraged any time someone claims that same-sex marriage is "disgusting." Ask anyone who knows me: I am not homophobic. I never have been and I never will be. But I am still not happy.
While this is not the first time Father's Day and Pride Day have had to share Cedar Point, it is still not OK. There is a reason that these two holidays are not lumped together nationally. There is a reason they should not be co-celebrated at one of the most populated tourist attractions in the country. There is a reason, and it is plain and simple:
It makes each one less special.
I have family and friends who are LGBTQ and I want to celebrate them. They have made monumental strides and are one step closer to achieving equality. I think Pride Day is amazing. I saw the pride parade in Columbus firsthand almost eight years ago, and I couldn't believe how enthralling it was to see so much love and happiness in one city block.
But my father, and all others out there, are special, too. The men who stay in our lives and raise us. The ones who tuck us in at night and protect us from the evils of the world. The ones who throw baseballs with us in the backyard and teach us how to be tough. The ones who put bandaids on our scraped knees and shoo away the monsters in our closet. Our dads deserved to be recognized, too.
And no one should be compromised.
And yes, I know there are gay dads out there who want to be honored, too, and they are. Father's Day is meant to honor any and all fathers. I don't care if you're gay or straight, black or white, short or tall, Christian or Muslim. I don't care who you are or where you come from. I don't care how you've struggled or how much you've questioned yourself as a parent. If you are there for your kid, and you make them proud to call you "Dad," this day is for you.
Should we really take away from either group of amazing people because Cedar Point can't be bothered to give the gay community and the fathers of the world their own special days? Is it really too much to ask that I bring my father on Father's Day and show him how important he is to me, and then bring my cousins the next Sunday to do the same?
We are all people, and we all matter. Our differences should not divide us; but that does not mean they shouldn't be celebrated either.
To all the dads out there who stayed (and all the men who stepped up for the ones that didn't), thank you. You're the real men we are thanking on Sunday.
To all the people of the gay community out there, you matter, too. We are Orlando Strong and we are here for you.
To Cedar Point, don't take away from the dads or the gay community by pushing them together. It's not fair.
It's time to give everyone their own chance to shine, without being in a spotlight made for someone else.
