Even if among friends, how does joking about anything gay affect those directly or indirectly involved in the joke?

Say you’re gay and you’re among straight friends who lovingly tease you about something ironically funny regarding “the gays” (said like Margaret Cho NSFW). Or, you’re at work, and one of your straight coworkers makes a hilarious, but snarky comment about gay guys.

Say you’re a lesbian and you’re hanging with a mixed group of friends who laugh about stereotypical lesbians – the plaid shirt wearing dykey woman shopping a Home Depot. Or, you’re at home with your parents and family, when out of the blue, someone starts joking about turkey basters and sperm banks.

Say you’re a transgendered person taking the bus to work, and you overhear a group of teens making jokes about the dude who thought he was going out with a gorgeous blonde who turned out to be another dude.

Are jokes about LGBTQ people ever appropriate? Even among friends and trusted folks? Does humor mock or diminish the legitimacy of another’s lifestyle?

Sometimes, people use humor to break the ice and build bridges. The TV show “Will and Grace,” for example, poked fun at gay people all the time. Yet many say this show helped to make the straight community more aware and accepting of the gay community. In this case, has humor made homosexuality into a joke – not something to be taken seriously? Or, has humor normalized homosexuality and brought it on the same level as other lifestyles portrayed on comedic sitcoms?

If you’re a part of the LGBTQ community, how do you feel about humor at the expense of our community?