Q

Q — The Q in LGBTQIA+ is for QUEER and QUESTIONING.

QUEER (adj., n.) — A deliberately elusive word to describe a non-heterosexual or non-cisgender identity. It can mean gay or LGBTIA+, or be in direct opposition to them. A reclaimed slur.

There is no consensus on what queerness means or where the boundary of queer is.

Queer can be someone whose gender identity is externally politicized. For simplicity, “queer” can be taken to mean anyone who is not both cis and heterosexual (cishet). Under that definition, anyone who is trans can be queer, anyone who is asexual can be queer, anyone who is LGBTIA+ can be queer. I say “can be” rather than “is” because queer is a term of self-definition, and many people are uncomfortable with it given its still-recent historical use as a slur. Others are uncomfortable with “queer” because it is associated with radical politics, which brings us to the more complicated (but probably more accurate) definition:

Queer can mean subversive, Other. One is made queer by their marginalization, by their inability or refusal to assimilate into cisheteronormativity. The category of “Other” is constantly shifting and therefore so is “queer.” With the legalization of same-sex marriage in the US, white cis gay middle-class people were largely relieved of their Otherness and formally allowed to assimilate into the legal and social institution of marriage, which consolidates resources like wealth and citizenship among the rich and so reproduces systems of oppression. A middle-class white cis gay man might, however, still face gendered oppression for wearing a dress in certain contexts. As we expand the boundaries of who is to be included, who is allowed to participate in society and public life, so too do we more clearly delineate the boundaries of who is excluded and punished; who is Other.

Queer has been in use since the 16th century, meaning strange or illegitimate. Its earliest known use as slur was in an 1894 letter by the Marquess of Queensberry, who believed that “queers like [the Earl of] Rosebery” were corrupting his sons. Queensbury also accused Oscar Wilde of “posing as a somdomite [sic]” having an affair with his son. That accusation eventually led to Wilde’s very public trial, conviction, sentencing to hard labor, and early death. Queer became a slur for same-sex sex, and people with same-sex attractions, especially effeminate men.

Since the 1980s, queer has been reclaimed by many in an act of empowerment and positive self-definition. However, it is still used as a slur and shouldn’t be coercively assigned to anyone, even in communities where queer is the collectively preferred term. In the 1990s and 2000s, gay replaced queer as the main homophobic slur, so many people eschew gay in favor of queer for that reason.

Maybe “queer” should not only be measured by disenfranchisement and systemic oppression. You don’t need to get gay-bashed ten times to earn your Gay Card. I want a world where queer kids aren’t defining themselves by violence suffered.

Queer is often in opposition to “LGBT+,” “gay,” and “homosexual.” While each of these terms could be used to describe the same person, they all have different socio-political connotations. “LGBT+” is a banner under which we can politically organize for inclusion and civil rights (assimilation); “gay” is a more culturally focused term which helps us identify sameness and foster community; “homosexual” has connotations of the psycho-medical establishment, but it is also reclaimed by some as a less respectable term than “gay”; and queer is an anti-identity. “I’m not gay as in happy, I’m queer as in fuck you.” Queer challenges the idea that sexuality is an inherent, essential part of the self. Queer is a practice more than it is an identity. It is about decentering and destabilizing and disrupting cisheteronormativity; therefore it is a politically radical position. Of course, queer is also an identity, despite the contempt it holds for identity categories.

Queer culture can have an unhealthy relationship with purity politics. As queers, we’re held to higher standards in our political thinking than cishets are, and if we are not extremely rigorous and articulate in defending our rights, we’re denied our humanity. However, we often replicate this within our communities; claiming a queer identity is itself a luxury not afforded easily to many queer people, who cannot be out or politicize their identity for fear of abandonment or discrimination.

Queerness is hypersexualized, by cishets and queers. Contrary to popular belief, queerness isn’t about the kind of sex we have; we can’t fuck away patriarchy. Talking openly about queer sex and having empowering queer sex are great and can be radical but that’s not the whole point. Queer sex can still be abusive, traumatic, and boring. Queers can not want sex.

It is not for me to say who is queer and who is not; if you think you’re queer, you probably are. Lots of queers are invested in policing queerness because if we let straight people into it, they will make it (“it” being either just the word “queer” or the whole subculture of queerness) less queer (notice how these insecure queers ignore the possibility for straight trans people, who are absolutely entitled to claim queerness). However I am more interested in expanding the boundaries of queerness to deliberately let more people in, with the hope of decentering and ultimately destroying cisness and straightness.

see also: QUEER (v.); GAY; BUGGERY; IDENTITY

QUEER (v.), QUEERED, QUEERING — To make queer(er).

There is no single way to queer a text, an idea, a field of study, or anything. Simply being queer within an institution queers it. Part of queering is to recognize that there is not a simple truth, not a single way of being, and not an essence to be understood.

Moments of queering can be experienced by anyone, queer or not—cishetness is so fragile, it’s constantly cracking.