Queer Liberation Quotes

Originally I was opposed to gay assimilation and targeted gay marriage as just another effort on the part of gays to resemble their straight neighbours.

What I love so much about drag is that it has politics at its very core; drag performers aren't afraid to talk about politics in our community and the changes we need to see systemically in society.

The stories I grew up with, whether it came to queer representation or representation of anyone that was different, it was always a story of, like, very sad, usually ended up with somebody dying, and it made the idea of being queer or different really scary, actually.

I love that drag is political. For me, one of the reasons I started doing drag was reading about how in the past, drag performers were able to organize the queer community and move us forward.

Arrogantly demanding their rights, activist gays and lesbians have become a militant voice in American politics, influencing elections and affecting the policies of high government leaders. Their public demonstrations and political lobbying have fooled many in our country into believing that they deserve special status.

I didn't know of any homophile movements pre-Stonewall.

To see a trans body in this ideal space - on a cover, in an ad - these are spaces that have immense cultural power to dictate what is beautiful, what is glamorous, what is aspirational, what is sexy, what is clean. That can be very powerful and helpful in the de-stigmatization of trans bodies.

The inspiration of my drag is the history of drag, the long tradition of drag queens being at the forefront of queer activism. That informs my drag style, and in a sense, that is the direction we need to go in the future.

We need to talk about representation for queer people in the media and also in law. And there's a long history of drag queens leading those discussions in marches on the street and even in bars going back to the time of Stonewall and before.

While writing 'City Boy,' I relied mainly on my own memories. In particular, I was able to describe the effect of gay liberation on an individual life (mine) as events paralleled my own growing self-acceptance; in this case, the political truly was the personal.

If you look at the history of the LGBTQ community, from my perspective growing up as I did in the U.K. in the '50s, there was just terrible, terrible discrimination, you know? It was extremely difficult to live your life as you should have been allowed to do.

In 1978, when I thought of creating a flag for the gay movement, there was no other international symbol for us than the pink triangle, which the Nazis used to identify homosexuals in concentration camps. Even though the pink triangle was and still is a powerful symbol, it was very much forced upon us.

Our very strength as lesbians lies in the fact that we are outside of patriarchy; our existence challenges its life.

That's what I wanted 'Pirate Jenny' to be: a queer, revolutionary fairy tale for the people that I love.

Lesbianism, politically organized, is the greatest threat that exists to male supremacy.

Part of the new morality of the '60s and '70s is a new attitude toward homosexuality. The homosexual men and women have organized to fight for acceptance and respectability.

You know, in this industry, being an openly queer actor or entertainer, you can play the game your way, or you can play it the industry's way. And I decided to play it my way. I played it the industry's way far too long.

If a bullet should enter my brain, let that bullet destroy every closet door.

When it comes to two of the big social earthquakes in the last fifty years - which are the gay movement and the women's movement - I think there is a direct line from Kinsey to those.

Pride is a time to celebrate our community, publicly display our love for one another, and continue our protest of equality that stems back to the BlackCat and Stonewall Riots.

I really value and appreciate Menaka Guruswamy and Arundhati Katju's contribution in spearheading the historic judgement of decriminalisation of Section 377 in India. Their relentless efforts and fight against the discrimination and violence faced by the LGBTQ community in India was a ray of hope for many of us.

I don't like the term 'coming out' because it gives the power to the other person.

We must be vigilant in sharing our stories and our truths as queer parents of color at every chance we get if we hope to see art imitate real life.

I never felt like there was an unconscious part of me around that woke up or that came out of the closet; there wasn't a struggle, there wasn't an attempt to suppress.

I was never an assimilationist. I always thought gays had some special mission.