Crystal Queer, by Sydney Monahan

I do think we should embrace and use the word queer within the struggle for LGBTQIA+ justice. Humans across the board all have similar tendencies and one of those is seeking understanding. I think that both members of the queer community and allies can benefit from the use of the word queer. Language and specific words can help someone understand something that isn’t necessarily instinctual to their life. Despite this, defining things in a way that is easier to understand often leads to generalizations that can ostracize. This is why I like the word queer. Part of the whole word’s definition is the inclusitivioty it fosters. “All language is specialized language in that it always encodes the interests of particular group” (Hall 80). As an umbrella term, the word queer makes me think there is a way for people who previously had no self identification, to feel accepted into society and have a way to express themselves to others, who might not be able to understand them initially. 

I think my generation also has a very unique perspective on the term queer, because the word has already gone through the process of having a negative connotation and positive connotation in our lifetime. Now, we see the term being used by the LGBTQIA+ community to give all members a term they feel is inclusive, but we still also see the term used to promote hate. Growing up, my larger community would be considered pretty conservative. I was raised Catholic and went to private Catholic school my whole life, so I guess there was a good chance I was going to end up underexposed to well, real life. My immediate family was considerably liberal, at least compared to our community. I am really grateful for especially my mom who raised me to think for myself and respect and value everyone. Thinking back the combination of these two communities, that was my foundation when I started to learn more about people I didn’t really understand or was never exposed to. My conservative community made me very underexposed to queerness, but my mom’s inclusive ideals made me open to it. Going back to my generation, my biggest and least sugar coated exposure to queerness was through social media. Social media has really been my way to deeper understand gay culture. It started just by watching gay YouTubers out of curiosity, and then slowly learned more and more about what it meant to be queer. The internet is so wide open and full of queer content and material, so in a way it normalized queerness to me, probably a lot sooner than it did for my peers. I love that the queer community was given an outlet and many youth had some better representation than what was being offered in every day life. 

That being said, while I was very open to learning and educating myself about the LGBTQIA+ community, not all people are. I found learning terms like queer and how to properly use them, to be very helpful in my acceptance and understanding of all things queer. I consider myself to be pretty analytical, and having the term queer helped me group and understand people without mislabeling them. “Queer can be a lot of things, but it cannot be unwilling to affiliate with others who are uncomfortable with or oppressed by a sometimes violent, sometimes dreary and debilitating dominant culture” (Hall 12). Unfortunately when a group labels themselves, for example using the term queer to identify one’s self, a door for hate is opened. A word meant to foster inclusivity, can be taken and, if the word is given a negative connotation by society, can be used as hate. Despite the negative history, with the word queer, I think it still has more positivity in today’s world than ever, and that comes from years of the LGBTQIA+ community fighting against the negative use of it. Outright Vermont is a resource for LGBTQIA+ in Vermont and this is their response to the use of the word queer. “ ‘Queer’ also has a long history as a term of re-empowerment by the LGBTQIA+ community, as a unifying term that recognizes that many complex identities that make up the LGBTQIA+ (and many other identities) community. We recognize and honor that the word queer is still very hurtful for some members of the LGBTQIA+ community and that that will always be the case for them. Yet, we see everyday how this word and identity continues to become less wounding and more empowering as young people fiercely and proudly reclaim it” (Outright Vermont). (http://www.outrightvt.org/why-we-use-queer/).

As I argue above, words and their meanings can have so much power, and I stand behind this. Unfortunately properly using a word is not enough. Words coupled with action, is what can truly make the lives of queer people better, which is the purpose of using the word. Actions can speak louder than even powerful words like queer, words are just the start! I think queering more spaces, queering society, and accepting all humans is what will really make our society a better place for all people to live. So going against my title, this subject matter is not “crystal queer,” because there are many developing factors. Even if it isn’t completely black and white I do think that embracing and using the word queer will benefit the struggle for LGBTQIA+ justice.