Check this out. We haven’t really come that far.
Take a pop over to the Hartford Undercurrent and read the posting, “Aladdin’s Hates Fags.” More important read the comment section. Don’t know if I should laugh or cry as they just don’t seem to get it. Check it out here. We will see what other comments will be added. As Frank said thanks to our straight friends for confronting homophobia as they well should since it is a straight invention. But come on guys and gals don’t you think that there should be some Queer input on this. Do you think that we don’t have a voice. That we are all helpless little ones. Straights don’t wear our shoes nor do we theirs. In my humble opinion as a person who as been in the movement since 1963 I see this as very poor coalition building. Let those who are oppressed lead the charge. Out of the delegation that has said yes so far there are all straights as far as I know unless some are “queer on the side” and all of them white. The icing on the cake is comment #12 what a brush off. Like my thoughts don’t matter, I don’t care what you say. Here is what I say. I am very surprised. The same Aladdin employee that put us down by saying that the ”open display of homosexuality is disgusting” also put down other minorities by saying that “you have to get rid of minorities downtown.” I really don’t think that our sisters and brothers in the other minority communities would relish the thought of a bunch of white people speaking for them without even a consultation. No honey just as only a fool would put their saving in the hands of the millionaires only a very foolish queer would put their fate and their condition in the hands of straights. Sorry baby, you are not us. When it comes down to it we in the Queer or LGBT community are responsible for our own liberation and for the casting out of bigotry and homophobia. You can help us get rid of it, and we celebrate your help but you can’t lead us nor can you speak for us.
4 comments
Richard, I apologize if the impression that I gave in the Undercurrents discussion was that queer input is unimportant. Our understanding of the issue itself…why bigoted comments are dangerous and why and how they must be confronted…is something that we learned from listening to our LGBT comrades.
I saw something very different in the discussion, though, and I would appreciate your thoughts — as well as those of other queer commentators here, of course.
A friend of mine who is latina told me not that long ago that as a member of an oppressed community she is tired of always having to be the one that is outraged about racism . . . as well as always being the “expert” that white people look to for answers. Wouldn’t it be nice, she asked, if for once white folks faced with white racism would be willing to be angry…to speak up…to confront that racism without waiting for a person of color to take the issue on?
That’s how I felt about this comment by an Aladdin employee. This is someone who, as Josh said, views other seemingly straight people as allies who share his homophobia. We don’t yet know whether that is a position that is shared by his boss or not. Maybe these are precisely the people that need to hear from other straight (again, seemingly straight) people that their behavior is unacceptable, and that we’re not going to give them a free pass.
I think if anyone ever suggested that these kinds of discussions should or could *exclude* queer leaders, that would be 100% wrong. I also think that if we suggested that in confronting homophobia we were speaking *for* LGBT people that would be 100% wrong as well. But — and this is my question in a nutshell — is it wrong for straight people to express their opposition to homophobia without first getting the blessing of queer leadership?
Thanks for being willing to have this discussion…ultimately, I hope we can develop a deeper solidarity from it.
Of course it isn’t wrong for straight people to express their opposition to homophobia but we are talking about a delegation here. Which would mean to me that it is a coalition of people. As Frank noted this type of homophobia and bigotry is felt very differently by queers. Straights may think, Oh, what nasty words but those words are words that have been used to kill us. So it strikes at us a bit different.
We admire straights who stand up and confront those who are homophobic as Frank also stated it is the straight who profit and benifit from it.
I think that Josh’s brushing off in comment #12 really bothers me. Would you form a delegation to confront racism around here and not consult with persons in the Black community? I am sure that a call would be place to Cornell lickity split. I am not asking for anyone to get any of our blessings damn that is an odd thing to say.
I will say after thinking more that yes the employee did think that Julia and Josh shared the same idea as he and were allied. So I guess it is a straight problem to “straighten” out in this case.
But do think that if no out-reach is done to the queer community on this and no imput from us is given, and here I don’t mean some flip off about the blog is for everyone, as if everyone reads the blog then it is wrong. I will still say even if I can’t really define it, “they still don’t get it.”
Lastly I did comment, I have e-mailed around the community today and I did sent an e-mail to Josh at HIMC about who was contacted and that we were waiting for a reply. I am not the spoke person for such a diverse community nor do I consider myself a leader. We ask everyone to discuss a action and then do it. The e-mail went out to everyone from PFLAG parents, LMF, True Colors and a host of others. Will cc you in the am.
Any way good luck with the delegation hope you can straighten out the straights but I don’t know for missing will be missing the queer spirit.
Richard, one thing that I didn’t realize until you pointed it out is that you had done so much outreach today to try to make this delegation a real coalition. Under the circumstances I can imagine that seeing this thing come off without your participation is infuriating. I think when David proposed and I seconded that we should have a “delegation” I used the term only half-seriously…basically just saying that a couple of people should talk to the owner and tell him that he needed to get this problem - forgive the expression - straightened out if he valued having a diverse clientele.
I see that you were working on something more formal…a true coalition and delegation of people both inside and outside the LGBT community. I would be glad to participate in such a delegation if I can be helpful in that way, or support it in any other fashion.
All who are reading this. Be sure to go over to the Undercurrent site and read the recent comments today. Getting interesting. We are waiting for more to comment about this. I will be working more on my last post there in informing our people. PLEASE out there in blog land send in your thoughts.
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