deviance: nimrods? rebels? or just different?

anytime i hear the word deviant i automatically think "negative". and this is natural for a lot of human beings to associate the word deviance with something that is negative, because all in all deviance is something that goes again social norms. of course, what is considered deviant is also dependent the time place and setting. that's why there isn't any set standard of what is considered deviant. these are some examples of things that are considered deviant in my time, place and setting.

1) atheism- for the longest time (okay more like between 1st - 5th grade) i didn't know about atheist. i didn't necessarily believe that everyone was a christian or whatever. i just always thought that everyone believed in some form of religion. when i moved back to new york city in the 6th grade is when i first encountered an atheist classmate. and this shocked me, not in the "WTF" kind of way but more like the "wow really?" kind of way because its my norm to have some form of religion.

2) teenage pregnancy- i've always known about teenage pregnancy. but the first time i encountered it in person was also in middle school (as you can tell, middle school was a tough time). one of my classmates was reportedly pregnant. word spread like wildfire and she became shunned and looked down upon. because its "not normal" for a teenager to get pregnant.

3) LGBT - this is on the fence. being homosexual is now becoming more common especially here in new york, because heck, new york is full of people who embrace differences. but in general the social norm in america is to be a straight, heterosexual person.

4) not supporting LGBT community- i decided to separate this from the last example. here in new york, especially with people of my generation "if you're not with us, you're against us". i personally don't support the LGBT community. this in no way or form means that i look down upon them, or dislike people who are homosexual. but because of my beliefs i do not support them. BUT that itself (me not supporting the LGBT community) kind of like a deviant act here (again in NYC) because here everyone fights about who's wrong and who's right. i remain neutral and its like everyone tries to prove me wrong, when in reality i'm not even trying to prove myself right.

5) not voting- again, because of my beliefs i choose to remain politically neutral. but people go crazy when you say you don't vote. "its un-american" "its your duty". while i understand all of the arguments its still my choice whether or not i want to do it or not.

6) (on a less serious/personal note) interracial couples - again this is on the fence because here in NYC we are a hodgepodge of different ethnicity. but there's always that kind of unspoken rule that you can only be in a relationship with someone of your same race/ethnicity. (those crazy racist old people...i'm kidding, sort of) that's why whenever me and my friend see and interracial couple, we applaud them.

in the article The Positive Functions of the Undeserving Poor by Herbert Gans, he speaks about different functions that the poor essentially provide to society. this article was eye opening and very depressing. one part that hit me hard was the part where he talks about spatial purification,those words in itself are so demeaning.  about how we can just tear down areas where the "poor" live to raise new high risers and make the area much more fitting for "wealthy taxpayers".   or how we basically use the poor people areas like a dust pan to put homeless shelters and other things that would be unwanted in the nicer areas. its sad because i feel like nyc definitely does this all over the place. just behind my building they tore down the old stores/building that burned down in a fire they're building a high rise luxury condo. and then they keep the "thrift stores" "charity places" in areas where its closer to the projects while keeping everything nice and shiny in the newly developed neighborhoods.