Whether you say this in jest or not, I suspect there’s an element of truth to this.
I have a cousin who lives outside of Hattiesburg with his partner, and they both say that they hate being associated with other homosexuals. They hate the parades, the flaunting, the sleaze, the politics.. they see this filth on TV, the effeminate, attention-craving antics - and actually call it all “faggy” and embarrassing.
(Kinda shocked me the first time I heard them use that word.)
After being together for a few years, they bought a place in the country and have been out there now for 15 years, one an engineer (formerly air force) and one a construction manager. While I usually hate what the homos are doing to our society (it’s friggin’ everywhere. Sickening), I can actually respect them on some level for conducting their lives in this manner. If they can’t go straight, at least they’re willing to be quiet about it.
I grew up in H'burg. I didn't know of any homosexuals when I was growing up there from the late 50's to the mid 70s, when I married and moved away. I may have know someone who was homosexual, but they certainly didn't advertise it. I even attended college there, and don't remember knowing any homosexuals while there, again, because they didn't advertise it.
I'm guessing MOST homosexuals would rather live their lives without the drama, if at all possible, even in this time of seeing homosexuality everywhere!