What do you love about being queer?
Queerness for me is a call out and back to those who handled me with tenderness and care, no matter what. I love that I am empowered to show up to every situation as me because of other queer folx who see me for me.
Where do you find your power in your queerness?
I find my power in the company, arms, hearts, and thoughts of my queer family. I am powerful because I’m still here.
Why is it so magical to be queer?
Queerness is magical because I know that some Midwestern brown or black femme queer is going to see me grocery shopping one day, or changing the oil in my car, or kissing a loved one, and they will see a path to knowing themselves and being known. They will just know. Even if we never speak we will both be known.
How do you define your queerness?
I define my queerness as a spiritual revolution where I show up to the world in a the way that is most gentle and affirming to my soul, everyday. My queerness lies in the depths of ridding myself and my life of binaries, of internal violence, and fear of freedom. My queerness is defined by me.
-Jenetta (She/Her/Mx.)
What do you love about being queer?
Being in my skin, unapologetically. Embracing my queerness opened so many mental and emotional blocks I had. I love being able to express myself without being tied down to normal societal rules. I like to challenge how others think I should dress/act/love/f*#k. I’m going to be me and take space in this world. I’m going to be me and take space in this world. I’m going to use my experiences to me it a btter place, and I’m going to love who I am.
Where do you find your power in your queerness?
I find power in expressing myself on or in between the binary. Growing up I was really tall (5’7” in sixth grade) stood out, I used to hate my body for it. Even now I take up a lot of space (5”10 in flats, & curvy as hell). I think we can all appreciate wanting to shrink ourselves, especially when we’re queer in cis culture. Once I started loving my body as a femme I was able to explore my masculinity more. Now I embrace the space I can consume whether I’m presenting as femme/masculine/nonbinary - it makes me feel like a fucking boss.
Why is it so magical to be queer?
Queerness has taught me unconditional love, which is nothing but magic.
How do you define your queerness?
I define my queerness as femme/nonbinary realness.
-Chelsea
(She/They/Her/Them)
“When I think about my queerness, I get filled with a grateful, joyous warmth. A little magical tingling. I think one of the big myths of queerness is the narrative that everyone is "born this way". While I know that's true for some, to me, queerness was a more active path, to lean into the desire and curiosity of extending beyond binaries. In a different era, I might never have come out or known I was queer, because the models were quite limited. What I love about queerness now is the constant imagination and creativity that comes with existing outside of prescribed norms. The queer people in my life have some of the best communication skills, empathy, and open-mindedness. Then there's the ways queerness extends beyond sexual identity and into a whole beautiful world of solidarity politics! My queerness is rooted in a strong critique of capitalism, a refusal to accept the world as it is, and always striving to disrupt oppressive structures. Increasingly, as I get older, queerness is about fat liberation, disability justice, mutual aid, and polyamory/relationship anarchy. I want everyone to be free to live in right relationship with each other, the land, and their own self power. This is queerness to me: an ever expanding journey, always learning, full of radical love and laughter and visioning a new world into being. Oh, and of course, really cool fashion, so many succulents, burlesque, wildly raucous fun, astrology, reverence to queer icons of yesteryear, and so much personal/collective healing and processing.”