But Tom’s dementia, and Parish’s duty of care, led them into new territory. A few years ago, they would go for coffee in Bath, Somerset. “And I would hold his hand,” Parish says. “He would fall over if I didn’t.” Sometimes passersby said unpleasant things, but Parish called them out, once challenging a builder: “Yes, we are together. He’s my husband.”
In recent years? Someone calling out a gay couple?
Bath?
Seems, unlikely…….
There’s a recent American saying I like: the demand for racist incidents exceeds the supply.
“Builder” is Guardian code for “thick scary white working class bigot”. It’s becoming increasingly difficult to use “van driver”, as most delivery vans are driven now by favoured minorities.
It’s never going to be “airline steward”, “hairdresser”, or “dancer” that makes the homophobic comment, is it?
Unpleasant comments directed at gays and particularly lesbians usually come from those further down the alphabet slope these days (plus our new Brits with their distinct cultural values which we have to celebrate).