[del4hope]

Back in the late 70s my brother's best friend had a disturbing experience. An older man had befriended the kid, who was not a big kid by any means. After the man made a pass at him and told him how "gay" he appeared, the kid practically fell apart. I don't think there was ever any contact, just discussion. This kid then dropped all contact with my brother, convinced that he, himself, was gay. My brother tried to convince his friend not to be convinced by this perv. Anyway, this was back in the late 70s when gay wasn't as chic(barf) as it is to some today. The last we heard, gratefully, was that about 10 years later, the guy had moved to Oklahoma and was happily married with a baby on the way.

[Always Right]

After the man made a pass at him and told him how "gay" he appeared, the kid practically fell apart. I don't think there was ever any contact, just discussion. This kid then dropped all contact with my brother, convinced that he, himself, was gay.

Labeling is a very powerful tool on young kids. Once you attach a label on a kid whether it be 'smart', 'cool', 'dumb', or 'gay', it radically effects how they view themselves. There is a reason gays want to be in school, this is when kids are developing their sexuality, they are confused and vulnerable, and their are easily influenced. It is much more difficult to label a young adult than an adolescent.

[Antoninus]

After the man made a pass at him and told him how "gay" he appeared, the kid practically fell apart.

I had a friend in college who had a similiar experience. He was not terribly "manly", and had some effeminate mannerisms, but he was not homosexual. He was very interested in women. Unfortunately, many of the people around this guy tried to convince him that he was gay, just based on the way he acted--including most of his female "friends." You can't tell me that kind of pressure doesn't have an effect on a person.