Intersectionality.
There are two primary arguments here.
1: Gay issues and black issues can be deemed equal to one another by means of the civil rights struggle. The civil rights struggle--as an umbrella term--is a social movement that encapsulates everything in regards to human equity and equality.
2: Gay issues and black issues are not the same because of choice versus inherent appearance. We choose to be queer, but we don't choose to be Asian American, Latin@/Chican@, African American, and so forth. Choice is what defines the worth of certain struggle.
Argument one fails to address one very crucial aspect to progressive dialogue and methodology: the intersectionality of social facets in one's identity. Why are we using words that denote worth and hierarchal organization in a dialogue regarding struggle? Is one struggle worth more than another? Are trans issues ranked far lower than Latin@ issues?
When we say queer issues are equal to that of black issues, we are actively ignoring the different social boundaries that occur in each arena. The word struggle does not carry the same definition for every set of issues for every community. Struggle does not simply mean "to fight against" or "to rally/oppose the current establishment".
Struggle, as a word of empowerment, describes the constantly changing dynamic and climate between the oppressed and the oppressors. When we say the black struggle is ongoing, we are not simply commenting on how blacks continue to fight for civil equity. Rather, we are commenting on the fact that the black struggle evolves due to the changing political landscape of America.
As such, the queer struggle is not defined by protesting or resisting against the establishment. Rather, it is both the individual and holistic experiences of queer individuals in juxtaposition to the oppressors that create our struggle. Struggles are defined by their process. Perhaps this is the one of the few shared traits in regards to setting the black struggle equal to the queer struggle.
Remember: we may fight against one cause, but not everyone learns to fight the same way. And we necessarily don't fight about the same problems. We shouldn't strive to make all struggles equal. In fact, we shouldn't place struggles in a hierarchy relative to one another. We need to recognize that each struggle exists independently in terms of their current political climate, but are relatable on cross-sectionalities of oppression methods.
The second argument? The issue of choice is never a strong enough argument to denote whether or not queerness is legitimate. Prop 8 certainly shows that choice is not a factor; it's the issue of whether or not we choose recognize queerness all on its own.
Until we stop doing this--this treatment of struggle as a trendy umbrella term--we will never win our fight.
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POST NOTE:
Please stop using the word "gay" to describe anything queer-relatable. Gay issues are certainly part of the queer discussion, but they do not represent the entire queer community. If the individuals in the video are trying to be all-inclusive, then using the word "gay" is NOT the way to do it.
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2 comments for this post
I doubt that gay is the new Black. enjoyed the article. being queer is not always a choice, we are often born this way and the struggle at times is simply courage to be who we are and gaining acceptance from all others while living.
I agree, to an extent, that being gay is something that's more easily disguised than being black is (because, honestly, unless you tell someone what you do in bed, are they really going to guess?). What I don't agree with is the possible discrimination because of the way you choose to express yourself.
Tyra's show is kind of painful to watch sometimes.