When people can be honest about their lives and their sexual orientation as just one part of their life, then we can move past the unknown and allow people to just be real. I think that’s what these films have significantly helped America see.

They’re stories about real people. They’re neighbors, they’re co-workers, they’re friends, they’re family members. That does, I think, over time translate into advancement for equality and against the defamation we face.

—Neil Giuliano, president of the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation, commenting on the outcome of Monday night’s Golden Globes, where films with gay and transsexual characters racked up the awards: Brokeback Mountain won four Golden Globes, including best motion picture and best director (Ang Lee); Capote’s Philip Seymour Hoffman won best dramatic actor; and Transamerica’s Felicity Huffman won best dramatic actress. In her acceptance speech, Huffman said, “I would like to salute the men and women who brave ostracism, alienation, and a life lived on the margins to become who they really are.”

Victor Tan Chen Victor Tan Chen is In The Fray's editor in chief and the author of Cut Loose: Jobless and Hopeless in an Unfair Economy. Site: victortanchen.com | Facebook | Twitter: @victortanchen