Am I Blue? Response

In “Am I Blue?” by Bruce Coville, a boy named Vince struggles with his sexuality and is bullied for what he may or may not be. His primary tormentor, Butch Carrigan, is convinced that Vince wants nothing better than to “jump his bones.” One horrid day, Butch pushes him into a particularly nasty puddle, and he picks himself up to see lo! his fairy godfather. His name is Melvin. Throughout the story, Melvin helps to guide Vince through his life being maybe- gay.
 

One of the things Melvin helps him learn is that you should stay true to yourself. When Vince makes a comment on how he walks "swishy," he replies that he gave up his life to walk that way. In this context, walking swishy is clearly a metaphor for being gay.

Melvin also helps him realize that if he realizes that he is gay, he won't be alone. He does this by telling him of Gay Fantasy #3--being blue.
 

         “We used to imagine what it would be like if every gay person in the country turned blue for a day. So all the straights would have to stop imagining that they didn’t know any gay people.”

          When Melvin gives him “gaydar,” the ability to see gays in shades of blue (for the degrees of their gayness), he finds out that the very people who proclaim to hate gays-- a republican homophobe and Butch Carrigan are both gay themselves. So is a married (to a woman) storekeeper with three kids,  while a librarian that “everybody knows is gay,” is not. Even his father is tinted blue.

           Like Melvin says, we are helpless at distinguishing between gay and straight-- we just assume that everyone they we know is straight because it hasn't been denied.  We are an ignorant, discriminatory bunch of people. In many human societies, the idea of being gay is profound and vague; a rebellious progressive disease that can be squashed as long as you stay away from them.

           In “Am I Blue?” we learn that it’s impossible.

  My Mom’s best friend is gay. His brother knows, and is unsympathetic. He (still) hasn’t told his high-school age children yet. He thinks that, somehow, keeping the fact that their uncle is gay from them will protect them. When the oldest daughter (a couple of weeks ago) was told --- at 19!!!!!--- she was shocked, but supportive. Realizing that her uncle, who she’d loved her whole life, was gay, taught her that we know and love many gay people in our lives.
 

           Bruce Coville really wants us to realize that gay people are as human as straights, and that we probably know and are rather fond of many. He wants to make us wonder if our parents are, if our friends are, if our uncles are, and if we are. He wants us to take it as one of aspects of everyday life, just like being straight is, and accept it with open arms.