PART ONE
THE
HAPPIEST
HERETICS
A SERIES OF QUEER ANECDOTES
Lincoln
APPEASING YOUR DISSONANCE IS NOT OUR DUTY.
“I understand why some people feel like gender is a prescriptive thing, but it doesn’t have to be. I love to experiment with gendered clothing. While I’ve been painting my nails and had my ear pierced since I came out, I’ve recently been experimenting more with makeup up and traditionally feminine clothing. Not only has it allowed me to become more comfortable with expressing myself authentically, but it feels liberating.
Instead of dressing to come off as a “man”, I can dress to come off as me.
It’s nice— once you stop caring about gender norms, then you can start shopping on both sides of the store!“
HOMOGENEITY WILL BE OUR DOWNFALL. Go buy fishnets.
Reno
YOUR LIMITS ARENT SACRED, JUST INHERITED.
“I always had to wear a uniform throughout school. I was expected to wear the same skirts, shirts, and shoes every day. I never had the chance to express my style or my queerness while in a religious school/town. When I reached college I was able to express my queerness externally! Being able to embrace masculinity, different styles, and types of clothing that would be frowned upon made me feel more confident and excited to start experiencing the world.”
QUEER PEOPLE DONT OWE YOU PERFECTION. Don’t ask for permission to be yourself.
PART TWO
IN
HALLOWED
EXILE
A SERIES OF QUEER ANECDOTES
Madelyn
DONT QUESTION MY BODY, QUESTION YOUR BIAS.
In seventh grade I remember having a class wide discussion about whether or not gay marriage was okay. Given I went to a catholic school, the majority of the class, if not everyone, said No, its not okay. At that point in my life, I hadn't ever let myself think about my sexuality in that way- or the possibility that I could be queer, but I started to cry at my desk. I remember feeling embarrassed, as if something was wrong with me. Why would I cry? I'm. Not. Gay.
On my 4th day at college I made my first queer friends that didn't also grow up catholic. By then I was out and proud, but it was through many conversations that I realized just how much grief and guilt I still carried when it came to my sexuality. Years later, I still find fragments of this preassigned personhood I tried to encapsulate for so long. A piece of me is even scared to share this with the world, but its nice though, to do something scared and feel freer than you ever imagined you could be.
KICK OPEN DOORS THEY PRAY STAY SHUT. Keep those pits hairy.
Lincoln
SACRED INTENTIONS DONT SUBVERT SUBCONCIOUS HATRED.
The misconception that bothers me the most is the idea that being gay just means you’re attracted to the same sex sexually. This is true, but there’s a reason the LGBTQ community is called a community. It’s more than sex. Being gay in America means you were more than likely outcasted by people to an extent, whether that be at school or in your own family.
Because of this, growing up queer you have to decide if you want to accept your otherness and with it the social rejection, or you can mask it through playing into masculine stereotypes. While now I am much more comfortable in expressing myself, I struggled with this for a long time. “What if people think I’m too gay?” I would think as I put on my nail polish in High School.
Now, I know it’s ok to express myself. Even me, a gay man, can feel glamorous and sexy. I am entitled to express myself however I want.
YOUR COMPLEXITY SCARES THE SYSTEM. Don't let losers snip your wings.
Reno
WITHOUT COMPASSION, HUMANITY IS A CHASM.
“People expect me to fit some aesthetic- either ‘more feminine’ or ‘more androgynous’, "more masculine"; and then stay that way for continuity's sake. Like my identity should be obvious at a glance. I’m realizing I don’t owe anyone that clarity. I get to shape my expression on my own terms, even if it doesn’t fit a stereotype. College has been me learning to name the pressures against me and push back. My queerness isn’t just my identity; it’s a collective resistance to a system that was never built for us.””
PIETY IS A PARADOX. Learn the rules, then break them.