Things I read that remind me of things that annoy me.
via Racialious an excerpt* of Kenji Yoshimo’s Covering; The Hidden Assault on Our Civil Rights:
When I lecture on covering, I often encounter what I think of as the “angry straight white man” reaction. A member of the audience, almost invariably a white man, almost invariably angry, denies that covering is a civil rights issue. Why shouldn’t racial minorities or women or gays have to cover? These groups should receive legal protection against discrimination for things they cannot help, like skin color or chromosomes or innate sexual drives. But why should they receive protection for behaviors within their control – wearing cornrows, acting “feminine,” or flaunting their sexuality? After all, the questioner says, I have to cover all the time. I have to mute my depression, or my obesity, or my alcoholism, or my schizophrenia, or my shyness, or my working-class background, or my nameless anomie. I, too, am one of the mass of men leading a life of quiet desperation. Why should classic civil rights groups have a right to self-expression I do not? Why should my struggle for an authentic self matter less?
I surprise these individuals when I agree. Contemporary civil rights has erred in focusing solely on traditional civil rights groups, such as racial minorities, women, gays, religious minorities, and people with disabilities. This assumes those in the so-called mainstream – those straight white men – do not have covered selves. They are understood only as impediments, as people who prevent others from expressing themselves, rather than as individuals who are themselves struggling for self-definition. No wonder they often respond to civil rights advocates with such hostility. They experience us as asking for an entitlement they themselves have been refused – an expression of their full humanity.
This reminds me of things that annoy me, firstly because this realisation is not new- isms hurt us all! assimilation is not the goal! and also, asides from being a shorthand tactic to push through specific social justice aims/to get a conversation started it bypasses what comes after this declaration of intent- the actual process of dismantling material and social benefits encoded and reinforced through the language and assumptions of normativity. Which is trickier, because then you have to talk power and politics and how, inevitably, people’s self understandings and experiences in the world will change and you will always experience pushback there. It can create a conversation but can it form coalitions? (ZOMG thats what I hope-slowly though) Particularly given the decentring potential if the conversation stops there. (There is also a presumption here of good faith that I don’t know about…especially when you take it out of conversation and into action).
Contrast to this post via Queer Gnosis:
And just as Mormons must embrace their weirdness – so too should we queers. We are sexual deviants and perverts. That’s right! I’m not apologizing for that. This is nothing to be ashamed of. And thank god for us deviants. Embrace it! Own it! Flaunt it with pride! We’ve got to stop fearing and hating these things inside us.
And this is what the gays and the Mormons can learn from each other! We’ve all got to embrace our inner freak. This is how we end the war. We’re all misfits, queers and oddballs. There is no such thing as normal. One more time: THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS NORMAL! And thank god! Hippy Hop artist Michael Franti says it best, “all the freaky people make the beauty of the world.”
Without the freaks the whole world would be drab and boring. Can you imagine life as a global Sacrament Meeting?
QUEERS: WE ARE SEXUAL PERVERTS AND DEVIANTS! EMBRACE IT!
MORMONS: YOU BELIEVE GOOFY, IMPOSSIBLE THINGS! EMBRACE IT!
EVERYONE: WE’RE ALL FREAKS ! EMBRACE IT!
LET’S STOP PROJECTING OUR OWN FEARS ONTO OTHER PEOPLE!
Doesn’t that feel good? So now that we Mormons and Queers have embraced our inner freak — there is one more element required to end the Gay/Mormon conflict. The LDS Leadership needs to repent.
Language of repentance aside (no one needs more X guilt) basically- never let power diffuse into a whimsical apolitical it hurts us all equally situation. And while this queer strategy is good making the basic point will always cost a little. Which is why this, from Latoya in the comments on the Racialious post resonates with me:
I understand. I like his appeal for empathy, because it is easy to forget. However, I also feel like I receive daily reminders of why I focus my work with PoCs – I just don’t care to have those endless go rounds with people.
*I haven’t read all of his book so like I said it just reminds me of things that annoy me. But also I liked what I read, in a keep the ball rolling kind of way.
