but first some musings about "gay rage"
This morning, I woke up feeling good, a decent night’s sleep refreshing me. Before I came in to work, I picked up the latest copy of Newsweek and read the (IMO horrifying) cover story about Lawrence King, an openly gay teen who was murdered by a classmate last year.
The article insinuated that if only L. King hadn’t expressed crushes, hadn’t worn stiletto heels (a fact that was repeated regularly throughout the article in case anyone missed it the first time), that perhaps this murder wouldn’t have occurred. It insinuated that an openly gay administrator somehow did L. King a disservice by being a supportive ear, by upholding anti-discrimination guidelines and advocating for educators to model respect for all students - after all, said administrator was obviously pandering to a “gay agenda”.
In an article riddled with statements like, “Larry pushed (it)” and “Larry was just trying to get attention” and “he was a troubled child who flaunted his sexuality and wielded it like a weapon”, Newsweek attempts to cover it’s homophobic ass by saying “they’re not blaming Larry for his own death-as if anything could justify his murder” and then finishes that statement with, “but their attitude toward his assailant is not unsympathetic.” The standard “gay rage” argument. The “Ooo, gay people are so scary! They make me angry and then it’s ok if I kill them” argument. Funny, this sounds an awful lot like blaming the victim of a crime to me. I don’t care what kind of clothing, make-up, or other gender expression someone has, the person you present to the world is never an excuse for getting shot point blank in the head twice in the middle of a classroom.
I drove to work today feeling afraid. I thought about how sad it is that I am thankful to be most often surrounded by people who don’t want to kill me. I thought about how frightening it is that there are hundreds, probably thousands, of people in the world who would like to see me shot in the head. Who would excuse my murder by saying I live “flamboyantly” and that, by talking about the people I love and live with, I was “pushing my life style choice.”
Fuck.
Then I read the article(s) about the man who opened fire on a children’s play being performed in a UU church, citing his issues with liberals and the gay agenda as valid reason for attacking and murdering people.
Then I read an article about testing athletes to make sure their chromosomes are gender conforming to the gender they express, which consistently referred to any chromosomal configuration other than XX or XY as a “defect”.
I’m sick. I’m tired of people asking me why I talk about queer issues so often. Know why I do? Because homophobic assholes are killing gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, intersex, and queer people, as well as anyone they suspect of identifying as such, as well as anyone they perceive as supporting or being allied to such people…AND THEY ARE GETTING AWAY WITH IT. Even if they serve time in prison, which very often doesn’t happen, they are getting away with it in the media. They are getting away with it in the hearts and minds of homophobic people. They are getting away with it in continued violence against queer people and you’re goddamn right I’m angry about it and I’m going to talk about it as often as I can.
Right now though, today, this very second, I just want to fall apart and cry for all of the people who have to deal with hatred and violence from those who have more power, stature, and ease to move within the world.
The article insinuated that if only L. King hadn’t expressed crushes, hadn’t worn stiletto heels (a fact that was repeated regularly throughout the article in case anyone missed it the first time), that perhaps this murder wouldn’t have occurred. It insinuated that an openly gay administrator somehow did L. King a disservice by being a supportive ear, by upholding anti-discrimination guidelines and advocating for educators to model respect for all students - after all, said administrator was obviously pandering to a “gay agenda”.
In an article riddled with statements like, “Larry pushed (it)” and “Larry was just trying to get attention” and “he was a troubled child who flaunted his sexuality and wielded it like a weapon”, Newsweek attempts to cover it’s homophobic ass by saying “they’re not blaming Larry for his own death-as if anything could justify his murder” and then finishes that statement with, “but their attitude toward his assailant is not unsympathetic.” The standard “gay rage” argument. The “Ooo, gay people are so scary! They make me angry and then it’s ok if I kill them” argument. Funny, this sounds an awful lot like blaming the victim of a crime to me. I don’t care what kind of clothing, make-up, or other gender expression someone has, the person you present to the world is never an excuse for getting shot point blank in the head twice in the middle of a classroom.
I drove to work today feeling afraid. I thought about how sad it is that I am thankful to be most often surrounded by people who don’t want to kill me. I thought about how frightening it is that there are hundreds, probably thousands, of people in the world who would like to see me shot in the head. Who would excuse my murder by saying I live “flamboyantly” and that, by talking about the people I love and live with, I was “pushing my life style choice.”
Fuck.
Then I read the article(s) about the man who opened fire on a children’s play being performed in a UU church, citing his issues with liberals and the gay agenda as valid reason for attacking and murdering people.
Then I read an article about testing athletes to make sure their chromosomes are gender conforming to the gender they express, which consistently referred to any chromosomal configuration other than XX or XY as a “defect”.
I’m sick. I’m tired of people asking me why I talk about queer issues so often. Know why I do? Because homophobic assholes are killing gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, intersex, and queer people, as well as anyone they suspect of identifying as such, as well as anyone they perceive as supporting or being allied to such people…AND THEY ARE GETTING AWAY WITH IT. Even if they serve time in prison, which very often doesn’t happen, they are getting away with it in the media. They are getting away with it in the hearts and minds of homophobic people. They are getting away with it in continued violence against queer people and you’re goddamn right I’m angry about it and I’m going to talk about it as often as I can.
Right now though, today, this very second, I just want to fall apart and cry for all of the people who have to deal with hatred and violence from those who have more power, stature, and ease to move within the world.