Opinion | The Q Word |
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What is it with MCV constantly using the word ‘queer’ to represent gay men and lesbians? Never have I seen such a blatant attempt by a lesbian and gay media publication [to] deliberately try to force a description on our community in such a way as what has been occurring at MCV of late. I’ve no doubt that your editor and [news editor] Rachel Cook obviously love the word, but please don’t force it down our throats! As far as I am aware, Joy Lynette Murphy and Dennis Altman (‘Queen honours queers’, MCV #388, Thursday June 12) and countless others that you have described in the last couple of [issues] have never described themselves as such!
Bobby, via www.eevolution.com.au
Editor responds: That said, in the same time I’ve also received the occasional complaint from readers who dislike the acronyms ‘GLBTI’ and ‘QLBTIQ’ because they consider them too impersonal or awkward; the word ‘homosexual’ because they considered it too clinical; and even, on two separate occasions, complaints about the word ‘gay’: once because the complainant thought the word was unrepresentative of the wider lesbian, bisexual, transgender and intersex community, and once because they were of an age where ‘gay’ is predominantly a school yard term of abuse (as in ‘that’s so gay’). Although originally used in a pejorative sense, since the early 1990s the word ‘queer’ has increasingly been used as ‘verbal shorthand’ to indicate the wider gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender and intersex community. Its reclamation here in Melbourne has been embraced by community groups and business including the Melbourne Queer Film Festival; the Australian Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender, Intersex & Queer Multicultural Council; the ALSO Foundation; and Hares & Hyenas (who on their website describe themselves as ‘Melbourne’s queer bookshop’). I regret that our use of the word frustrates you. Why that is so I don’t know, as in your letter you don’t articulate why the word causes you offence. As to views of the majority of MCV readers on this subject, I invite your response on our website or as letters to the editor – Richard Watts.
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written by Sally Goldner , June 25, 2008 The irony of Bobby's letter is the writer raises the issue about labelling other people or organisations, yet Bobby then calls MCV gay and lesbian - against MCV's self-declared identity. Isn't that a bit inconsistent? Bobby's constant attacks against anything other than gay and lesbian over the last 5 months (these include bi and trans as well as queer) amply demonstrate this inconsistency. Bobby is saying "respect me, but I won't respect you". And a respectful question to the editors: your printed guidelines say letters will be verified to print a first name and a suburb, but Bobby is always printed as "via the website," rather than with a suburb? Does this person really exist, or is said person merely a fabrication? report abuse
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written by Brian Noll , June 19, 2008 Keep up the great work on the word queer, I say! I agree with MCV's assessment that the alphabet soup or GLBTI or QLGBTI has in the past and continues today to cause unrest within our community over the most simple things, such as which letter should go first or using GLBTI when it's an issue not involving gender identity therefore it should only be LBG. Queer is often a safer term that I generally only hear comment from individuals associating themselves with 1970s feminist principals. (I support most of these principals, just not the word semantics.) While members of the Australian Senate are doing such offensive things as denying people the right to a pension by delaying the governments superannuation bill, maybe members of our community can realise that regardless of what banner we stand under and the label used to refer to that banner, we are under one banner. Stop the in-fighting and focus on those outside of our banner - use your energies for the necessary and difficult work of encouraging Australia's society to not tolerate or accept us, but to acknowledge the basic diversity within the broad Australian community and the principals of equality therein. WRITE A LETTER OR CALL TO YOUR SENATOR TODAY! report abuse
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