tiredsurely there are better ways to advocate for queer liberation than peddling biological essentialism (e.g. "we were born this way!"). this type of argument seems to imply "we can't help that we're like this, so leave us alone" as if it would be acceptable to deny us our humanity if it WAS a choice
gabe@ughsadkid tbh it doesnt matter if we were or werent born this way, society reacts the same regardless of whether or not this was a choice so thats enough of an argument to start looking for different ways to approach queer liberation
🏴Right?! And this rhetoric erases the experience of fluidity of sexuality and gender for so many people. These things aren't just spectrums. They're also not fixed in any necessary sense.
jay 🔆@ughsadkid yeah like imo the problem isnt so much that its seen as a choice but that queerphobes see it as The Wrong Choice and that we shouldnt have the ability or options to choose
Stu@ughsadkid this also sounds like the "we've always been like this" or "we know since we're young," which is bad bc lots of people don't come out as or realize they're queer until adulthood, or even old age.
Lainy @ughsadkid yeah i always found it nonsensical too. 'born this way' implies that you should get treatment as soon as possible.
Woozle Hypertwin@ughsadkid I always say that this falls into the same trap as the "it's unnatural!" anti-queer argument, i.e. the appeal to nature.
All human beings, unless raised by wolves, do "unnatural" things every day.
The real counter is: why should anyone care?
handsome covfefe ⚡️✅@ughsadkid wow I didn't even think of it this way, and it's true, we deserve humanity regardless of whether it's a choice, and it also can imply that we are helpLESS, and therefore deserve to exist in peace for pity, not bc we're fucking people
@rhythmgoddesss SPEAK IT!
🍂V.M.S.🍁@ughsadkid BECAUSE IT SHOULD NOT MAKE A DIFFERENCE?!?
Account inactive@ughsadkid When I was in college in 1992, the defense was "God made us this way," and I argued then that this didn't help anybody choosing to embrace the queer side of bisexuality and also handed power to the religious sphere at the expense of every gay atheist. I was shouted down then.
It's been 25 years, and we're still pushing bioessentialist arguments with new faces when we should be demanding the right to choose our identities and have those choices be respected.