On queerness (45/365)

I really liked this essay by Kit O'Sullivan, about growing into their non-binary identity; in particular, the sentence 'The stepping stone into myself was the moment that I realised “queer” is an umbrella term for plethora of sexual and gender identities that are simply not cis or not straight' really resonated with me. Because I understand why a generation of gay people - perhaps principally gay men - can never hear "queer" as anything other than the term of hatred and abuse that was hurled at them (I have much less sympathy for Tumblr teens who talk about "the q-slur"), but it's so much easier than "biromantic asexual, increasingly unconvinced about gender as a concept" (and also gives away a lot less personal information in the course of getting across the fundamental point of Not Straight). "Queer" allows me the space to explore, to feel different on different days. It gives me the freedom to be myself without having to commit to specific definitions. It encompasses all the parts of me instead of trying to put different bits into different boxes. It feels like me in a way other identities simply don't.