Reply #32: Yes, and most people responded with help and suggestions.

[stevenleser]

Just like would happen if you reached out to most other discriminated against groups.

I have no idea why you want to attribute some sort of hidden agenda to what I did. I can only tell you that as I went to deal with this issue, I remembered a discussion in this very forum on whether deleting bigoted comments (against anyone, not just the LGBT community) was the best way to handle things like this. So, as I went to compose this OP, I thought I would make my question to the community broader, not just "Should I delete" but "Suggestions for the response".

The other thing is, this is not a 'one-off' issue. I'm trying to decide how I will handle things like this going forward so I can be consistent. Whether the bigotry is aimed against Jews, the LGBT Community, African Americans, etc I'm trying to decide if I am going to delete these comments. I'm really grateful for the responses here to this OP that have contributed to that decisionmaking process and I am ready to announce my decision.

I am going to let the bigoted responses 'live' for 3-7 days. I am going to post responses immediately detailing my feelings on such things and how the response will not live for more than a week.

That way, the offender gets any attempt I can make to educate them (I know, it will not work in 99.999999% of cases, that is OK), but their bigotry is not there forever.