Transgender people, Hispanics, blacks, and drag queens played crucial roles during several of the earliest achievements of gay rights campaigns. These groups, however, have not received the benefits of the transformation they triggered. Queer people of color are linked with revolutions that were characterized by skirmished at Stonewall, New York, throughout the 60s. They also initiated early legal campaigns, with individuals such as Maxine Perkins risking life in jail for fighting laws against homosexuality. Queer people of color fronted several riots occurring in the 60s. The group had already faced marginalization and inequality. Along with being gay or transgender, the queer people of color resorted to disagreeing with a system that could potentiality discriminate them further. This paper will analyze gay and transgender issues such as critical sovereignty, orientation towards a unique phenomenology, queer people in neoliberal contexts, and the untold stories of despair and hope.
Critical Sovereignty
The concept of critical sovereignty for indigenous groups reflects the struggles of women highlighted in indigenous oral narratives. Issues such as indigenous eroticism have given particular attention to the eco-eroticism nature of women in the marginalized indigenous tribes in the United States. Eco-eroticism refers to the tendency of an individual to fall in love with inanimate things or nonhuman beings. As described by (Barker, 2017), the “other-than-human” entities include rocks, sticks, stars, plants, and animals from diverse gender identities. Stories have explored how eco-erotic narratives reveal about the desire of women, as well as how these passions have been subsumed and marginalized under Christian ideologies and colonial social forces. The actual description of pansexual relations is understood by acknowledging the eco-erotic nature of indigenous women as motivation for different activist movements, such as food sovereignty, women's healing and health, and campaigns for environmental justice.
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In scene 2:47 of the film THEESatisfaction by QeenS, the actor sings, “Let all musicians be physicians!” The scene highlights the concept of critical sovereignty for women musicians as individuals entitled to erotic liberty for everyone because music evokes the physical and emotions needs of the listener. On page 34 of the book "Critical Sovereignty: Indigenous Gender, Sexuality, and Feminist Studies,” the editor offers an account of the several narratives of queer people of color (women) falling in love with inanimate things. Barker (2017) points out that
“ These ‘other-than-human’ beings include animals, plants, stars, and even sticks and from a diversity of gendered identities” (34).
Orientation towards a Unique Phenomenology
The concept of orientation towards a unique phenomenology concerns the comprehensive understanding of how queerness can also direct the actual alignment of phenomenology. Various phenomenological writings have failed to describe the contribution of orientation objects to personal preferences, especially for feminists. According to Ahmed (2006), orientations refer to how people begin to perceive things. Orientation is described as the starting point in considering the self-presentation of the body as well as its tendency to do or perceive the same for other things. Ego has its unique domain of observable or unseen things. Additionally, the ego perceives the notions and things from a specific orientation.
In scene 0:05 of the music film Arca by Anoche, orientation towards a unique phenomenology is depicted by actors posing in a presumably nude position to demonstrate the mainstream though of passion or lovemaking between individuals of opposite sexes. Several seconds into the film, as well as hearing the audio, however, demonstrate the twisted perception of lovemaking because the actors are people of the same gender. In page 544 of “Orientation: Toward a Queer Phenomenology,” Ahmed demonstrates the concept of phenomenology and orientation by writing,
“ A queer phenomenology might find what is queer within phenomenology and use that queerness to make some rather different points” (544).
Queer, Gay People in Neoliberal Contexts
The concept of being queer as a gay person in the neoliberal environments reflects the failure of mainstream society to accept the steps made by marginalized people to achieve recognition. The numerous personal narratives of transgender and gay people of color are comparable to some degree. However, the "coming out of the closet" stories like the ones reported by several Dutch gays have not yet been considered as critical steps by the majority. It is uncommon for most liberal societies to accept the stories of many minority or migrant lesbians and gays because they assume that these queer people live double lives. Evidence indicates that lesbians and gays from minority communities fear to live openly because they believe that they would bring shame and doom to their families.
In scene 1:21 of the music film Intentame, by Xina Xurner, the concept of gay people in neoliberal societies is highlighted. The actors struggle to use music to depict their orientation while using sexual theatrics to an audience that does not engender performance to actual sexual orientation. The scene also illuminates some aspects of eroticism, which destroys the inability of some gay people to define and support their sexuality among the liberals. In page 80 of his book, El-Tayeb (2012) points out,
“ Thus, queer Muslims, if such an identity can be envisioned at all, occupy a place close to that assigned to Muslims, i.e, they are perceived as being too oppressed and alienated from their own needs to speak as long as the still identify with Islam” (80).
The Untold Stories of Despair and Hope
Countless stories have remained undocumented for the feelings of despair affecting the minorities and marginalized societies. Artists have expressed their response to effectively distressed communities in which the queer people of color, especially women in Los Angeles, lack any means to seek refuge. Most people in distress have felt that there is nothing left of personal dreams to destroy. Images have also been presented to highlight the cities and societies torn apart by the storm of anger erupting because of class and racial politics. The outcomes of tumultuous policies affecting lesbians in Los Angeles have been associated with the rise of many narratives about neoliberalism, community, and despair. The emotional terrain of Los Angeles, for instance, has reflected several lesbians torn apart by the psychological conflicts felt when trying to integrate into the mainstream society. In the end, hope emerges from the ability of the marginalized groups to outlive the tensions brought by bad politics that foster disparities among the people.
In scene 24:05 of the film Born in Flames by Lizzie Borden, the plight of the marginalized people of the state is depicted by the girl gang resorting to violent means to earn a living. Despair has struck the people, similar to the plight of the Los Angeles lesbians who resorted to frequent meetings to seek hope. On page 58 of the book titled "Show and Tell," Epstein (2017) says,
"there is a feeling in the air…a feeling of despair like there is nothing left of one's dreams to destroy" (58).
Further Thoughts on the Concepts
The concepts that guide gay and transgender issues function to oppress the queer people of color in diverse ways. For example, a lack of critical sovereignty has compromised self-expression among women whose focus is on advocating environmental sustainability using their passions that are uniquely displayed. It is difficult to understand the contribution of the marginalized queer people to the society if the available channels to express personal desires are blocked. The problem of limited sovereignty guiding equality, sexuality, and personal orientation can be addressed by supporting policies that uphold the precepts of liberty and self-expression in the constitution. Almost all the concepts described in this analysis are related. For instance, the principle of orientation concerns the need to understand the definition of despair that develops from misconceived perceptions about phenomena. Secondly, sovereignty in self-expression relates to the concept of being gay in a neoliberal environment, which is characterized by the lack of mainstream understanding of the place of gay people.
Conclusions
The concepts analyzed in this study are essential to the proper functioning of the community. Often, policies are developed to cater to the unique needs of humankind. Existing approaches to include everyone in the welfare of the community, however, fail to determine the unique needs, desires, and orientation of every member. Overall, I have learned that the principles of equality for every person regardless of race, sexuality, beliefs, and orientations.
References
Ahmed, Sara. "Orientations: Toward a queer phenomenology." GLQ: A journal of Lesbian and Gay Studies 12.4 (2006): 543-574.
Barker, J. (Ed.). (2017). Critically sovereign: Indigenous gender, sexuality, and feminist studies . Duke University Press.
El-Tayeb, F. (2012). ‘Gays who cannot properly be gay’: Queer Muslims in the neoliberal European city. European Journal of Women's Studies , 19 (1), 79-95.
Epstein, R. (Ed.). (2017). Laura Aguilar: Show and Tell . UCLA Chicano Studies Research Center Press.
