Making the World a Safe Place to be Genderqueer

[ahunter3]

Basically, movements like ours tend to have two goals: to reach out to others like ourselves, in the belief that if you're like us it's easier to have the support of other similar people than to be isolated; and to do social change, to modify how we're treated by others, to stop the mistreatment or oppression, to change the law or the social

Comments

Oh, and...

[ahunter3]

I'm going to comment on a phrase I used in passing. In the paragraph about race, I state that treating the different races on any level - institutionally, personally, culturally, etc - as if they WERE inherently different is wrong, immoral, unfair, has caused great pain and suffering.

I want to stress the word "inherently". I don't think every non-colorblind action is wrong and immoral and so forth. Ameliorative and recompensatory actions require taking history into account; denying the existence of race, not as an intrinsic but as a cultural and historical experience, would be wrong in that context. But they don't depend on the notion of an INHERENT difference.

Personally I think we are not yet at the magic cutoff point where ameliorative and compensatory actions should be dispensed with. Philosophically, I think it has to be said that at some point, presuming racism is indeed eradicated, then yes, ameliorative and compensatory measures would be ended as well.

[anais_pf]

I thought you were going to tell that second agent that you had written lots of stuff about young Derek, but cut it as of less interest, and would be happy to restore it.

[ahunter3]

Yeah... on 2nd read, the short phrase "For example" sort of leapt out at me and made me ultimately uninclined to try to make the case that I had once addressed the specific issue they brought up. When you say "for example", you're saying it's part of a larger phenomenon. In this case the lit agent (& staff) are saying my writing has an ongoing pattern that leaves them struggling to engage emotionally with my main character (i.e., me).

So I did write back but in a more general way, saying I'd really like it if, insofar as they liked my project, they'd work with me towards addressing that.

[musicman]

Don't give up. Best of luck on that agent who is reading the whole thing (do you know how rare that is???)

[anais_pf]

I'd say there's a one in 562 chance. :)

[khall]

I love this, and the attitude expressed. You said this so much better than I've heard it said before.

K.

[ahunter3]

Thank you, khall! I value that.