The Powerpuff Girls 1

Sara Tejada, Brianna Lopez, Samara Matthews, Aimee Panganiban

John Kubler
English 115
9 December 2014

Project Love and Identity

The controversial subject regarding sexual orientation has been a hot topic for the past
couple of years. Although the public dispute has seemed to calm down and the road to
acceptance has come near, the battle is not yet over. There is still a large portion of society that
questions whether or not a person is born with their sexual orientation. This difference of opinion
is relevant to the fight for equality because gays continue to be denied service and are ridiculed
for being different. Project Love and Identity is formed by a group of four girls Samara
Matthews as the director, Brianna Lopez as the editor, Aimee Panganiban as the web master, and
Sara Tejada as the Graphic Designer who believe that everyone should be treated equally. By
using the song Same Love by Macklemore Project Love and Identity has established a clear
message regarding the artists support for gay rights and the fight for society to realize that ones
sexual orientation is not something that can be cured, changed, or fixed. Scientists, geneticists
and doctors have found biological evidence that sexual orientation is hereditary and therefore
would be something one is born with. Homosexuality is not a lifestyle choice nor is it just a
disease or a phase. The LGBT community is full of people just like everyone else people who
deserve to be treated as equals in society. The Power puff girls teamed together in Project Love
and Identity to fight for the rights for the LGBT community. We believe that society should not

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just discriminate against a group of people who identify themselves as homosexual because
society does not understand that ones sexual orientation is biological and genetic.
As the director, Samara tried to support the idea that sexual orientation is not a lifestyle
choice, yet the American society continues to treat it like it is a choice like it is something that
can be changed. If ones sexual orientation was a choice then there would not be young children
that can already know they are different because they find the same sex attractive. For example
in the movie My Life in Pink, a young transgender boy named Ludo wants to dress up like a
girl at a very young age. Ludo states that he wants to be a girl and that someday it will happen.
This is not his choice and has not been influenced by his family, this desire to be a female is part
of Ludos biological make-up. If this was a just phase and it could be cured then it would not be
so hard for homosexual or transgender people to go back to the original sexual orientation. The
gay gene is a real thing, in 1993 a geneticist named Dean Hamer conducted an experiment
where he found that in the case of two brothers it was [shown] that pairs of brothers who were
openly gay shared a small region at the tip of the X, and proposed that it contained a gene that
predisposes a male to homosexuality (Gaves 1). People have a hard time accepting this still,
even when shown proof. However, in almost any case you look at, when a person is told they are
in a phase and they then try to be something they are not they are miserable. They are depressed
and are not themselves anymore. Nothing has been cured in this case their lives have only been
worsened. In one case a man stated that I spent the first 35 years of my life trying very hard not
to be gay, to the extent that I married my college sweetheart and created a beautiful family . . .
Hard as I tried to make that life work, I could not escape my attraction to men. Choice had
nothing to do with it (Hormel 1). This man started a life that he never wanted and although he
can appreciate it now, if it were not for society, he would have lead a much different life that he

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could have been very happy with. We all need to learn to accept that we are all born a certain
way and we cannot keep trying to change someone who is.
Gay gene or not we are all people and just because one family has a dad and a mom and
one has two moms does not make them any less of a family. It is all the same love as
Macklemores song says. Just because you do not understand someones love does not mean you
have the right to judge it. Two men can be just as in love as a woman and a man. As the director,
I have been closely related to people who identify themselves as homosexual. For example, in
my own personal experience, my boyfriends cousin who is a boy has a boyfriend and they are
just like any other couple. They bicker and love each other just as much as my boyfriend and I
love each other. However, people will always judge and with judgment comes an inevitable
social movement. We all need to overcome the idea of stereotypes and get out of that box in our
head that tells us how people should be and, Until the time that people accept that all of us are
born into our sexual orientation and identity, LGBT citizens will still endure discrimination and
selective application of the Constitution's protections(Hormel 1). Discrimination will go on, just
as it did when race was an issue. It is all the same this is the same hate that's caused wars
from religion/ Gender to skin color, the complexion of your pigment/ The same fight that led
people to walk outs and sit ins/ It's human rights for everybody, there is no difference!
(Macklemore 1). This is just history repeating itself and we need to try and learn from the past
and not let this get too far. We need to accept our differences and as Macklemore states in his
song we should all have rights as humans, we are all equal and should be treated as such. We are
way too hateful in this world and do not realize it at times but we just bring people down for their
differences. This is not a way to live life and the way to fix this is by first trying to treat everyone
as equal and respecting each other as human beings.

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Enforcing and enhancing the depth of the songs meaning and the message the group is
trying to display, Brianna Lopez, as an editor, uses the video to visualizes the essence of how
people involved in the LGBT community, are normal people who just want love just like any
other couples in the heterosexual realm. And for society and other individuals to hinder
homosexuals and trans-genders to act what they feel like they are and who they want to love, is
an act against their inherited human rights. In the beginning of the video, it displays clips after
clips of babies and one video of a pregnant woman, arguing that we are all human beings with
the same beginnings of life. Then right when the instrumental music part ends, a video of a
teenage boy and girl kiss, which displays how society has their certain expectation placed upon a
child at such a young age to fall in love with the opposite sex. The next scenes right when the
piano part plays, its a flash of videos of a boy looking disturbed about something and in between
his disturbed looks are videos of a heterosexual couple kissing and then a scene from My Life
in Pink where Ludo and his crush are slightly flirting with each other. This part of the video
shows the conflict young children must feel when they want to pursue their same sex attractions
when at the same time, they have to think about society and what their families would think if
they were to come out of the closet. So, its a constant confusion for a child. Right when
Macklemore starts singing, there are clips of boys dressing as little girls. But on one particular
video when Macklemore says, I thought that I was gay, (Macklemore1) a video of a little boy
in a pink dress is slowed down because then the audience gets to capture the gravity of probably
what a transgender or homosexual child feels when they realize who theyre attracted to or what
they feel inside. Although its a sort of clarity, its also a sort of burden and shock because they
realize that they wont be accepted by society and will most likely experience much pain and
hurt because of something they cant control nor change. The video then shifts gears to a more
opposing part of how society feels about homosexuals by showing a scene when a little boy was

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playing with a bra and a woman comes in and another clip where a father slaps his son during the
lines of Ben you loved girls since before pre-k which demonstrates this expectation society has
in favor of the heterosexual world and how if others choose to go against it, they would be
persecuted. In addition, society also has a certain expectation on how people should act and do,
and it is shown in the video during the line, a bunch of stereotypes all in my head/I remember
doing the math like, Yeah Im good at little league./A preconceived idea of what it all meant/
(Macklemore 1) through clips of cheerleaders, models, football players, and Mike Tysons
boxing match.
The video continues and shows a clip of two little boys wanted to get married and a clip
of two lesbians making out, then it jumps to clips of what it seems like parents putting opposition
into children and then on the lyric, Playing God (Macklemore 1) theres a clip of a statue of
Jesus. This demonstrates how homosexuals just want to be themselves and experience love the
same way other people want to, but at the same time, society tries to demeanor people who do so
and will do whatever it can to stop others from becoming homosexual. Although, what society
tends to forget is that God is loving and therefore, if society is grounded by Christianity, society
should also be grounded on love, compassion, and forgiveness, which is what a clip of a father
hugging his son in a very dreamy like effect portrays.
During the chorus of the song, there is a clip of this man looking conflicted between his
love for a man and his family, and one of the clips that emphasizes the depth of what this man is
going through is a video of two other men holding each other in a very couple like way. This
couple clip is slowed down and added a dream effect because it gives the audience a sense of
how deeply in love the conflicted man feels and the dilemma he, and many other homosexuals,
have to face when it comes to pleasing their family/society, or going by who they love and what
they really are. At the end of the chorus, he feels very burdened by the disapproval of his family

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that he decides to commit suicide, hence, portraying a point that if society and families continue
to treat their love ones like this who have this kind of attraction, its going to hurt their love ones
in sorts of ways to the point of committing suicide. Shortly after the chorus, the music video
displays a clip of a little boy who got into a fight and who is losing. The video is slowed down to
emphasize the pain homosexuals most likely go through which enhances the argument that
society is taught to hate when it should be taught to love regardless of the differences others
have. In addition, supports the argument that society is taking others human rights. The video
shows clips of the civil rights movement, but also adds in another point of a human rights aspect
which is children being arranged to wed, usually, older men. In a website called GirlsnotBrides
which is non-profit organization that is trying to end arrange marriage for children stated,
Marriage shall be entered only with the free and full consent of the intending spouses
(Universal Declaration of Human Rights, 1948) (Human Rights and Justice-Girls Not
Brides). This quote means that these little girls human rights are being taken away simply
because their family wants them to marry someone different, the same way homosexual rights
are being taken away because the state is not allowing them to marry people they love. Elanes
Photography declined services to a lesbian couple because she didnt want to provide services
due to the fact that they were a gay couple, but when it was brought to court, New Mexico said
that she was wrong because, Elane Photographys refusal to serve Vanessa Willock violated
New Mexico Human Rights Act, which prohibits a public accommodation from refusing to offer
its services to a person based on that persons sexual orientation (Elane Photography, LLC,
Plaintiff-Petitioner, V. Vanessa Willock, Defendant-Respondent, 26). This means that gays and
what not, are being recognized to obtaining human rights and are rightly so just like how
children have rights to not be forcefully wed. This argument of human rights are displayed in the
music video when the video lowers the volume of a news cast about a little girl who ran away

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from her family because they were going to force her to get married, and when Harvey Milk
from the move, Milk is talking about human rights and how everyone deserves to obtain
freedom and human rights. Also, with that video, it also shows the emphasis on how much
homosexuals and the LGBT community is more than willing to fight for their rights, which
composes this idea that it is become a social movement.
As the music video continued, it showed oppression, and yet acceptance. This is shown
when the mother is mending her child from what it seems as though he just came from a fight.
Another scene is when a father is hugging over a coffin during the line, With the veil over our
eyes (Macklemore 1) which basically says that society is blinded by the hate and stereotypical
expectations to the point where they cant see the hurt theyve inflicted on others. This part of the
video encourages others to stop being so hung up with the homosexuals and the LGBT
community and instead press on to accept and love them for who they are.
The last cinematic technique used in the music video is in the end when different clips of
heterosexual couples and homosexual couples are making out and being romantic with each
other and also of heterosexual and homosexual families. At the end of the video, there is a clip of
a gay couple playing with their children and thats slowed down because it captures the beauty of
whats most important in life, which is love that is expressed through gay dads who love their
children very much. Hence, society should not interfere with what homosexuals and what not,
want in thats important in life which is love.
Aimee, as the Webmaster for the group, wanted to clearly state the main argument of the
music video for Project Love and Identity on the first page of our website. By having the title of
the introductory paragraph Born This Way, Aimee wanted to explain that those who are a part
of the LGBT community know that their sexual orientation was not based on choice, but rather
an understanding on who they are on the inside- their true identity. They know they were born

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this way. Aimee decided to post pictures of heterosexual and same-sex couples to show diversity
and also assure that those who visit the website can visually see what the general purpose of the
website. She then worked on the pages titled The Issues, A Deeper Look and The Reality
to especially focus on explaining the subtopics of our music video.
On The Issues section of the website, Aimee posted a YouTube video of a gay man who
supports our main argument that being gay is not a choice. He explains that as much as he tried
to turn away from being gay, even having a girlfriend, he knows that his true sexual orientation is
being gay. She also added a slideshow showing transgendered children from videos we have seen
for our class, Ludovic and Jazz, as well as other pictures of heterosexual and same-sex couples to
again show a general explanation of our various topics. The cartoon Aimee chose was the
Genderbread Man to describe how a person expresses their identity: our orientation comes from
within, through our actions we express our identity, and our sex is determined through our
genitalia. This also connects to how the LGBT community sees their identity. The other
YouTube videos Aimee had posted goes into the topic of young LGBT youth and transgendered
children.
Aimee wanted to express another subtopic of our music video which is that many LGBT
kids today are being bullied and teased. Because of this, they feel insecure, struggle to find
comfort, and always feel like their lives are in danger. The Tyra Banks video she added also
focuses on another topic: those who are LGBT are discriminated by other people which similar
to racial discrimination. Many LGBT individuals face discrimination simply because of their
sexual orientation. In addition, this segment of the Tyra Banks Show argues that discrimination
based on ones sexual orientation is similar to racial discrimination explaining that it is a civil
and human rights issue. Aimee then work on The Reality page showing various statistics and
infographics supporting the arguments in our music video.

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Aimee introduced on another topic, showing that like heterosexual couples who have
children, same-sex couples also have their own children and also have the ability to start their
own family. This shows that same-sex couples are in fact normal people who simply want to live
normal lives. Aimee also post infographics explaining that many LGBT youth are especially
being abused at school. In addition, Aimee post another infographic explaining that today, the
LGBT community is being more accepted by other people and that many believe people others
should become aware of the many issues the LGBT community faces every day. The next page,
A Deeper Look is where she choose various articles supporting the main argument that being
gay is not a choice looking deeper into genetics and also including a court case involving
discrimination towards a same-sex couple.
The web master included an article written by a science correspondent named Sarah
Knapton who introduces Dr. Michael Baileys discovery that gay men shared genetic signatures
on part of the X chromosome- Xq28. (Knapton 1). Through this study, we are able to support
the argument that genetics do have some influence on ones sexual orientation, supporting the
main argument of our music video. Aimee also included an article written by former United
States ambassador James Hormel, a gay man himself, explaining that being gay is not based on
choice. Hormel explains I spent the first 35 years of my life trying very hard not to be gay. . . I
married my college sweetheart. . . Hard as I tried to make that life work, I could not escape my
attraction to men. Choice had nothing to do with it. (Hormel 1). As much as Hormel tried to
maintain his relationship with his wife, he knew that he was only interested in men. In addition,
she also included the Masterpiece Cake shop V. Charlie Craig and David Mullins case which is
an example of discrimination towards same-sex couples. Aimee wanted to show a real case in
which same-sex couples are discriminated and refused to be served because of their sexual
orientation.

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Overall, the web master wanted to explain both the main and sub-arguments of our music
video. However, Aimee wanted to explain the subtopics more in detail explaining that although
the LGBT community understands their sexual orientation is who they truly are, because of this
they continue to face discrimination and are looked down upon.
The web master has a similar job as the graphic designer. Using visuals and graphic
pictures and texts to defend the belief that homosexuality is something that cannot change was
the task of both members.
Being the graphic designer of Project Love and Identity, Sara wanted to show how the
never-ending public debate regarding homosexuality is often viewed in a black or white
perspective you either support it or are against it. A large percentage of the American society
has a preconceived view of homosexuality, believing that being homosexual is a choice one
makes. Macklemore points out the most flawed notion of homosexuality in his hit song Same
Love starring Miranda Lambert, when they sing And I cant change, even if I tried; Even if I
wanted too.(Macklemore 1). These lyrics oppose the belief that homosexuality can be cured.
The singers and songwriter of Same Love explain that homosexuality cannot be fixed. There
is no treatment to cure someone from being a homosexual because it is not a disease.
Macklemore addresses this issue when he sings, the right wing conservatives think its a
decision and you can be cured with some treatment and religion. The opposing view and
advocates for the LGBT community see the flaws in this statement. Dr. Michael Bailey of
Northwestern University, points out that sexual orientation has nothing to do with choice. Our
findings suggest there may be genes at play we found evidence for two sets that affect whether
a man is gay or straight (Knapton 1). This shows that being homosexual is not a choice, but
rather a part of someone's biological makeup. In the role as the graphic designer, Sara choose to
support this argument with some pictures of a drag queen from the move To Wong Foo, and

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another picture of some same sex couples. While making the graphic brochure, Sara decided to
use these pictures to support my argument because they show that love is love, regardless of
gender differences. Also, the picture of the drag queen supports my argument that the desire to
perform and act as someone else and love another person is something that no amount of therapy,
medication, or religion can change.
The other lyrics Sara used from Macklemores song Same Love were also used to
support the arguments of Project Love and Identity. Macklemore explained how left out and
isolated gays feel because they are shunned from society. His lyrics, When kids are walking
round the hallway plagued by pain in their heart/ a world so hateful some would rather die than
be who they are. These lyrics are powerful, because society often overlooks their part in causing
another person so much pain. Since homosexuality is also something a person has no choice in,
Sara believes that they do not deserve to be discriminated against to the point that some decide to
end their lives. The severe harassment and wrongful treatment that homosexuals endure often
cause them to question why people who have faith and believe in love and forgiveness, can cause
so much pain to another individual because God loves all his children is somehow forgotten.
Society has often looked down upon homosexuality. The LGBT community was being
categorized by the American society based on a preconceived idea of what it all meant/for those
that like the same sex/ had the characteristics. The world shaped a stereotypical view of
homosexuality based on certain characteristics that they associated with being homosexual.
Macklemore reflects on his own experiences when he sings the lyrics: When I was in the third
grade I thought that I was gay/ Cause I could draw/ and I kept my room straight. This is a
perfect example of the stereotypes and gender differences that society is responsible for making.
Drawing and cleaning are not just activities that females do, yet when a male does it they are

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questioned about their sexuality. Jenny Graves, a professor of genetics at La Trobe University,
explains how society views homosexuality in a negative way because of the stigmatism that
surrounds the concept of homosexuality being a genetic part of a person. Graves interviewed an
American geneticist, Dean Hamer, who comments during a study about homosexuality that he
was challenged at every turn by people unwilling to accept that homosexuality is ...genetic,
rather than a lifestyle choice (Graves 1). This shows how ashamed and uncomfortable people
can be when it comes to talking about homosexuality.
Everyone has the right to fight for their beliefs. Macklemore stands for his beliefs when
he declares I might not be the same, but thats not important / no freedom till were equal/ damn
right I support it. People that voice their opinion make change occur, which is how religious and
racial discrimination was challenged. The hate that is directed towards people who are
homosexual is causing more conflicts in society because its the same hate thats caused wars
from religion/ Gender to skin color/ the same fight that led to walk outs and sit ins/ Its human
rights for everybody, there is no difference! Discrimination against the LGBT community is
similar to the discrimination because of someones race. However through free speech, the
American society fought against judging people by a condition they were born into. Just like
race, homosexuality is something that cannot be changed because you are born with it. It is
immoral to judge someone based on a condition into which they were born. James Hormel, the
first openly gay U.S. ambassador wrote in his article, Being Gay is not a Choice, that until the
time that people accept that all of us are born into our sexual orientation and identity, LGBT
citizens will still endure discrimination and selective application of the Constitution's
protections (Hormel 1). Discrimination based on sexual orientation is unconstitutional, and the
LGBT community will continue to fight for their rights.

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Project Love and Identity has a goal for society to learn and understand the LGBT
community, while accepting their differences. Although some people may have a difficult time
accepting homosexuals for who they are, it is vital that society learns to treat them as equals in
society and give them the respect that they deserve. We respect peoples races, life choices, and
even religions. So now we need to learn to respect other peoples sexual orientation. We are on
the road there but we are nowhere near complete with our journey to accepting sexual orientation
as just another difference between humans.

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Works Cited
Graves, Jenny. "How Our Genes Could Make Us Gay or Straight." Washington Post. The Washington
Post, n.d. Web. 06 Dec. 2014.
Elane Photography, LLC, Plaintiff-Petitioner, V. Vanessa Willock, Defendant-Respondent. IN THE
SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO. 22 Aug. 2013. Print.
Hormel, James, and The Opinions Expressed in This Commentary Are Solely Those of James Hormel.
"Being Gay Is Not a Choice." CNN. Cable News Network, 16 Nov. 2011. Web. 07 Dec. 2014.
"Human Rights and Justice - Girls Not Brides." Girls Not Brides. N.p., n.d. Web. 09 Dec. 2014.
Knapton, Sarah. "Being Homosexual Is Only Partly Due to Gay Gene, Research Finds." The Telegraph.
Telegraph Media Group, 11 Nov. 0059. Web. 07 Dec. 2014.
""Same Love" Lyrics." MACKLEMORE LYRICS. N.p., n.d. Web. 06 Dec. 2014.