cross-posted from: https://kbin.social/m/news@lemmy.world/t/619189
In Murfreesboro, Tennessee, a new city ordinance targeting public homosexuality is hitting libraries. “When in History have the ones banning books been the good guys,” says local activist.
From the queer perspective the attitude isn’t charming. When open season gets declared on us talking about it as a “financial loss” or an unpopular move that is a win in the long run ignores that we are being used as fungible tokens in a game rather than people seeing the human cost. When we have to leave a community because we fear for futures losing all our support structures and having to rebuild it is a cold comfort that some politicians might not get elected this month or this year. The brazen hate towards us is treated as classless rather than actually threatening. It is becoming more brazen and in places it is becoming more commonplace…more normal.
Looking at this strictly from an our team vs their team dynamic over who proves morally superior in the end trivializes a lot of the damage done along the way. How often have we been told that we should just give up hope of things getting better and stop bringing immediately life threatening issues to the table because it isn’t politically convenient? We are not pawns we are people.
Guess what my friend? You are a pawn on one side of this chess game. Either press the attack and let the GOP kill itself over gay rights, or… what?
I honestly have no idea how you’re proposing to proceed.
No idea how old you are, but for perspective, gay rights have exploded in leaps and bounds since I was a kid. In the late 80’s, fag bashing was a perfectly acceptable sport. And by god, no one came out the closet. Even men like Freddy Mercury and Elton John weren’t called “gay”. Jesus, what a horrible moniker. They were merely, “light in the loafers”.
Y’all have come a long ways, and have a long way to go. But having seen the right’s reaction to your newfound freedom, and seeing them losing, why not push them harder?
And yes, this might mean violence done to you. Did you think that wasn’t already a thing? Forget about Stonewall?
We’re on the same side, and probably talking past one another. But I’ll fight for you any which way I can.
Not a matter of “how we proceed” but a matter of maybe having a little empathy and urgency? I am trans and gay and an a little under forty. I realize being gay has come a long way. I grew up during the time gay rights were expanding and “gay” was a slur. Right now I am a minority where bashing is happening with protests in the hundreds. There is a decent amount of transphobia I encounter within the gay community itself much less in public. I am not saying not to press the advantage but saying “some liberals get upset when we should be celebrating” is trivializing a lot of the pain happening under the surface and just comes across as tactless to those of us still living our version of the “80’s”.
I get told a lot that maybe the Liberals would be more successful if they just sacrificed our cause to appeal to the Conservatives who might swap sides… As if waiting another four year stint to address things isn’t going to mean wondering if anybody I know is going to die giving up hope things will get better. Heck I have heard variations of this from the gay community as though I am simply an obstacle to greater acceptance and that our moment is gunna be further down the line. "Oh, Not now of course but hold off for that sweet reward that could mean your life gets better… eventually… Once the gay thing is in the bag and we’ve got ours and then can maybe consider if you are actually worth the effort from a place of safety and privilege. Meanwhile get out of our establishment will you? Your desperation isn’t quite matching the vibe. " The number of gay folk flaunting their gayness on the anti-trans picketlines meanwhile is still a thing. The LGBTQ+ no man left befind mantra is deliberate because we know that callousness has a cost. To quote Catch 22 "The enemy is anybody who’s going to get you killed, no matter which side he is on. It doesn’t make a damned bit of difference who wins the war to someone who’s dead.’
“You are a pawn get used to it” is not the talk of an ally, it’s the sound of someone openly discussing the opportunity to make you a martyr.