Seasons Don't Fear the Queer, by Eileen Broome

Yes. The simple answer, the not-so-simple explanation is actually a kind of, maybe, 'I mean if you want to use it in the right way, wait what's the right way?' type of yes. The use of the word queers lives in the grey space it often represents. There is a group of people, myself included, who use queer as a result of not totally belonging in the more defined letters. While I often use bi-sexual to describe myself, I am not a person who is bias to genderfluid or genderqueer. However, I find the labeling to be more complex and unnecessary in defining my feelings of love. The label itself was once a slur, but not, the word is used for inclusion of those who feel weer to even their own community.

Queer as a word can mean many things, but in the easiest way it means skewed or different. Another definition that I often finds sums it up is Focault’s explanations in Hall’s Queer Theories, "whatever is at odds with the normal, the legitimate, the dominant. There is nothing in particular to which it necessarily refers. It is an identity without essence" (68). But what is so important about defining and using the word queer? Most people, even within the community don’t realize what it has done. The word, once used in anger is now used to define a more fluid sense of self and identity. Queer has been used with disgust and anger with intent to harm and injure, but now is used to describe a type of love- whether that be self love in comfort of identity or romantic love.

When queer and words like queer become a regular identifier and adjective, outside members of the community become more educated on those who live within the grey area. It allows all members of LGBTQIA+ to identify in any way they want or as simply queer- different. In terms of queer justice- it would attempt to include all members in the quest for justice, not just the apparent injustices, but the ones that can go unnoticed.

Sadly there are limitations, since queer means different it is often hard to escape the obvious feeling of being outside from the ‘normal’ that society often attempts to achieve. Even so, in the community queer can leave out those whose gender identity may be defined by the word, but not so welcomed by others who use the term. As activist Namaste puts it, queers, “have often oppressed gender nonconformists” (97). This comes from a history of racism, sexism and other oppressive ideas members of the community have displayed towards different races, people of SES, or religions. Unfortunately, these thoughts can reflect the exact feelings of isolation received from the outside.

To embrace the word queer means to understand that identity is a construct that we are given through subliminal messages in media and outright messages from family, friends and society. It is accepting that there is a space that you occupy, that you are aloud to occupy, that may not neccesarily fit into gay, lesbian, bi-sexual or transgender. You may find that that space is not as empty as you thought it was. There are millions of queer individuals that fall somewhere on the skewed line of sexuality and gender who have not felt justice for their identities. As unbelievably complex as it is, queer is simple, queer is the person that invites you along so you don’t feel so awkward in the group.