Pride Month:

 Sexual dysfunction has been with us all along. We did not need rainbow flags, aggressive LGBTQ militias and tasteless public displays to keep us aware.

In grade school, there was no motivation for us to pick our friendships based on sex. Sex was not a factor except for the kids who shaved. 

When I started school (in the '30s) it was dress that was important. If it wore a dress, it was a girl. If it wore pants, it was a guy.

Teachers treated everyone the same. Their main concern was that the kids did their homework and behaved. 

There was no gender politics. If any teacher had showed up for work dressed like that shop teacher in Oakville, he would have done it only once and never be heard from nor seen around locally again. We had institutions for such behaviour.

We began to take notice of small gender differences in Junior High. That was when the hormones began to kick in. That's when the more serious problems with gender ID began to show up. A few former friends and buddies began to drift away into attitudes we did not quite understand.

Sexual and gender issues were carefully avoided by teachers, school boards and parents. In fact, parents appeared to make an effort to ignore a child's quirky sexual behaviour as long as possible. They probably hoped that in time the kid will smarten up and more normal behaviour will set in.. 

Except in the most obvious cases, we did not become consciously aware of marginal gender behaviour until we became adults and grew more perceptive. Some gender-ambiguous people moved away to larger communities where they were able to disappear into the social fabric. This strategy made social life more comfortable for the subject as well as for everyone near by.

Those who stayed at home made an effort to adjust to what was expected of them just as we all do. No one organized gangs ready to enforce their personal preferences upon a society that did not actually care because it had its own problems.

This was before the people in the rapidly evolving electronic media decided there was enough public interest in the antics of the "gay" gangs to put to some actual use. They were identified as a handy (and cheap) space filler when media programs ran out of suitable material to insert between their soap and shampoo commercials.

The rainbow flag was no doubt seen as a handy feature to flash on the screen to jolt sleepy viewers back to a more normal state of semi-consciousness..