We must fight for ourselves (no else is going to do it) and if in that process we bring greater freedom to the world at large then great. We come out of the closet, face the rejection of society, face firing squads, just to love each other! Every time we f-, we win. (We have so much to fight for we are the most precious of endangered species.) And we are an army of lovers because it is we who know what love is.
We are an army because we are so powerful. Everyone of us is a world of infinite possibility. Being queer is "grass roots" because we know that everyone of us, every body, every c-, every heart and a- and d- is a world of pleasure waiting to be explored. It's about being on the margins, defining ourselves it's about gender-f- and secrets, what's beneath the belt and deep inside the heart it's about the night. It's not about executive directors, privilege and elitism. It's not about the mainstream, profit-margins, patriotism, patriarchy or being assimilated. (We have been carefully taught to hate ourselves.) And now of course it means fighting a virus as well, and all those homo-haters who are using AIDS to wipe us off the face of the earth.īeing queer means leading a different sort of life. It means everyday fighting oppression homophobia, racism, misogyny, the bigotry of religious hypocrites and our own self-hatred. Whether it is an AIDS death due to homophobic government inaction or a lesbian bashing in an all-night diner (in a supposedly lesbian neighborhood), we are being systematically picked off and we will continue to be wiped out unless we realize that if they take one of us they must take all of us.īeing queer is not about a right to privacy it is about the freedom to be public, to just be who we are. They are your enemy when they don't acknowledge your invisibility and continue to live in and contribute to a culture that kills you.Įvery day one of us is taken by the enemy. It is easier to fight when you know who your enemy is. Rights are not given they are taken, by force if necessary. Straight people will not do this voluntarily and so they must be forced into it. Until I can enjoy the same freedom of movement and sexuality, as straights, their privilege must stop and it must be given over to me and my queer sisters and brothers. I want there to be a moratorium on straight marriage, on babies, on public displays of affection among the opposite sex and media images that promote heterosexuality. Their images are on my TV, in the magazine I bought, in the restaurant I want to eat in, and on the street where I live.
#Defcon 1 mentality free
But not only do they live a life free of fear they flaunt their freedom in my face. Straight people have a privilege that allows them to do whatever they please and f- without fear. You should by all rights be dead.ĭon't be fooled, straight people own the world and the only reason you have been spared is you're smart, lucky, or a fighter. It is a miracle you are standing here reading these words. There is nothing on this planet that validates, protects or encourages your existence. You as an alive and functioning queer are a revolutionary.
That everyday you wake up alive, relatively happy, and a functioning human being, you are committing a rebellious act. How can I convince you, brother sister that your life is in danger.
Text of a manifesto originally passed out by people marching with the ACT UP contingent in the New York Gay Pride Day parade, 1990.
0 kommentar(er)
