(Art by Gabriel Garcia Roman)
When first coming out, it had been closely preceded by my friend, first. Though for 4 years I struggled to figure out how best to hide my bisexuality, the ease of accepting my friend translated by proxy into my acceptance of self. This is why queer icons are dear to the queer community.
I’ve expressed this in past, in reference to celebrities; “I like her because she’s gay. ...No, obviously that’s not just why, but it’s the most important. There are so few queer celebrities I get to see.”
Queer iconography allows closeted people to see themselves, quietly explore self by proxy, in safety, and to conceptualise a community.
This is why I am more annoyed when a queer celebrity does wrong - that it becomes harder to find someone that may represent my experiences and lives a good life. But celebrities are not meant to do this, they’re just figureheads. Individuals we may accept faults in, and strengths; we give them greater leniency because they are distant, not human like us, and ultimately, a representative of a higher class, inherently flawed. In response to this I choose to learn more about them, and others, and distance myself mentally; to avoid personalising their experiences. To have courage to disagree, and forge my own views, rather than blindly defend.
Ultimately, celebrities, queer or otherwise, are capable of wrong, and we may accept and forgive this. It still hurts, of course, as one may fear they misrepresent us, or our community. This is why we must separate ourselves from our richer, conventional counterparts. We must acknowledge the differences between us. And, at times, we must forgive our friends even if they have a blog dedicated to someone who just always manages to rub us the wrong way - as long as they haven’t done anything too horrendous.
A community is a family and in a family you don’t always like who you’re seated next to at the table.
This is why you have to look around, and see someone else to make new conversation with, to learn about, and hopefully fare better with. We are told not to meet our heroes, and this is what I am trying to express. Icons are impersonal, conceptual, and they have a function; for us to reflect upon them. No one celebrity can represent us truly, and so knowing about our history, our community, and our favourite icons can prepare us for uncomfortable conversations, relations, aspirations, and affirmations. Queer iconography is dear and important; but rather than blindly support, we should remember the breadth of our community, and its many people to admire.
To carry on the meandering topic of queer iconography, I wanted to offer icons which I personally know of - faults and all.
Name: Sappho
Disclaimer: Sappho was a Grecian poet from the island Lesbos. The terms Sapphic and Lesbian are derived from her life; there is debate whether she was exclusively attracted to women, and it some scholars argue whether her reputation is the result of defamation. Truly, Sappho is a figure we may interpret freely.
Field: History
Materials: There are a limited number of Sappho’s verses left, even fewer complete.
Do I Stan: Absolutely, I want my first tattoo (if I get one) to be an ode to Sappho - Maybe a visual reference to a poem!
Name: Syd (Previously Syd Tha Kid)
Disclaimer: Other than Spotify and a lucky magazine, I don’t see Syd often, as a French musician, currently with band, The Internet. Her solo music has been slow and rhythmic, openly discussing her passion for women. She has been criticised in past for her open dislike of the term “lesbian”, her careless musings - and outings - of other celebrities’ sexuality, and has been called a “misogynistic lesbian” for a music video from 2011.
Field: Musician
Materials: Fin
Do I Stan: Yes, I love Syd’s relaxing music, which I’d absolutely bring to a party if I ever had one.
Name: Frank Ocean
Disclaimer: For a while everyone joked about the delay it took for Frank to release music - but soon rumours supposed that, being bisexual, Frank was having unexpected trouble finding collaborators.
Field: Musician
Materials: Nostalgia Ultra, Channel Orange, Blonde
Do I Stan: I’m always pleased when I hear Frank, but I’m not someone that actively seeks out his content.
Name: Angel Haze
Disclaimer: Angel Haze produces honest music dealing with relationships, experiences, and eventually, trauma. Their music is largely alright, but their music video for Battle Cry, for example, requires a strong content warning. Angel is agender, and pansexual.
Field: Musician
Materials: Dirty Gold, Reservation, Back To The Woods
Do I Stan: At one point I was a huge fan of Angel Haze’s music, but eventually I fell off and forgot to find new content after a short hiatus. I still really enjoy the music I have downloaded.
This article was written by S Leighton, a student writer, and featured in the previous issue of the StandOut MLC Newsletter. Stay tuned for news about the new StandOut Zine, which will integrate all school members' thoughts and ideas into a single publication!