My Very Queer Wishlist

I ripped this from Nikki's blog, the idea was so good. :)

1. Same-sex marriage gets legalised.  Yes, it will lead to the death of the family as we know it. But who has a 'normal' family as according to The Man?  It's time to quit shovelling around that heterosexist, patriarchal rhetoric and think outside the box. It's 2010.

2. The bridges between the communities of colour in the queer community start to heal.  Were all oppressed by sexism, racism, classism and heteronormativity; let's form a united front to change it!!

3. The bridge between the queer community of colour and the White queer community is reforged.  We need to realise our differences are a source of strength and solidarity, and we are all worthy of equal rights, respect, and dignity.  Yes, that means we have to talk about racism.

4. Transpeople get the rights and respect they deserve.  All colours, all pronouns, all of them deserve huge props for the strength and determination they have to express themselves in a very hostile binary society.

5. More media representation of queers of colour.  Hell I'd be happy with more people of colour being depicted in the media, so long as it's accurate and not perpetuating those disgusting stereotypes that make it hard for people of colour to go about our daily lives.  As for having more queer people of colour in the media, that would help break down the barriers and start creating more acceptance within our own communities in general.

6. Families of queer persons be more accepting.  For all queers many times, it's not worth losing the support of family members (financially, emotionally, etc.) by coming out.  I understand.  And people of colour have different elements that oppress them (racism, exotification of people of colour, etc.) and family is a ready-made safety net when things go bad. It's a slippery slope and everyone makes the choice that is right for them.

7. We develop or borrow an appropriate pronoun for those individuals who do not identify or want to be addressed as 'he' or 'she'.  They is really, really tough for me to remember, and the Ze thing really isn't working for me.  Can't we just take a page out of Indonesia's five-gender system and use hir?  It's close enough to the norm so as not to be difficult to integrate, but still does the trick.

8. Everyone is free to express their gender as they please.  Not gonna happen within my lifetime, but maybe in my next one.

This is a half wishlist half to-do list.  There are so many agencies out there working to change the status quo; I need to get involved with some. Or start one. ;)