Why I Like to Use the Word "Queer" for Myself

As most of those in the LGBTQ+ community know, the word "queer" has historically been used as, seen as, and treated as a slur. A lot of older LGBTQ+ people see it as such, and I think it is perfectly okay that they see it the way they do. However, a lot of younger LGBTQ+ people are starting to claim the word "queer" as an identity label for themselves. I happen to be one of those people.

While I like to call myself a lesbian and a demigirl, I also feel connected to the label queer. For me, I feel so connected to this word because it is intrinsically tied to my identity as an anarchist. Being against hierarchy, authority, oppression, etc. means that I am strongly against hetero/cissexism, hetero/cisnormativity, transphobia, homophobia, and the idea that cishet people should have authority over what labels LGBTQ+ people use. Every time I use the word queer for myself, I feel as if I defying cishet ideas of what LGBTQ+ people should label themselves. Cishet people originally used the word queer against us. They expected us to be afraid of the word; they did not want us to use it for ourselves. By using this word against us, they were trying to make us feel as though we were inferior to them. When LGBTQ+ people took the word queer for ourselves, we drained the negativity from it. The connotation behind it changed entirely. It became ours, and in doing so it became less of a weapon and more of a term of endearment. When the meaning of this word changed, it began to become more than a label. It also became a statement. Every time you announce yourself as queer, you announce that you will not let cishet people have authority over your identity. You announce that you are unapologetically yourself and that every "bad" word that is slung your way will not affect you. You announce, in some cases, that you reject everything that most of society (especially cishet society) accepts as normal or celebrates. You announce that you are fed up and that you will always fight for the liberation of LGBTQ+ people. In my opinion, the word queer is an inherently political word. That is not a bad thing, however. Even though not all people use the word queer because they feel it is connected their beliefs, political or otherwise, I certainly do.

Another reason I like to use the word "queer" for myself is because every time I use this word to describe myself, I feel as though I am carrying on the legacies of LGBTQ+ people of years past, especially radical left LGBTQ+ people. Historically, a lot of LGBTQ+ leftists used the term queer to describe themselves because it aligned them more with the movement of queer liberation and gave them power over their own identities (see what I wrote earlier about what happened when LGBTQ+ people started using the term to describe themselves). 

I may add more to this if I think of more things to write about.