for all my artists, content creators, and anyone else out there who use specific color palettes for references/designs, here are the hex codes for each of the lgbtq flags for your queer creative purposes. i hope you find these useful. enjoy!
Pansexual & Panromantic Visibility Day is coming up on May 24th - make sure you have everything to you need to celebrate with the Pansexual Pride Power Pack! The pack includes a pansexual pride flag & pin, and your choice between shoelaces, earrings or both.
Order today from the BiProducts Etsy shop (biproducts.etsy.com); all proceeds support production & publication of Bi Women Quarterly.
I was explaining to my students today about the Gay Spar in Dublin. A surprising amount of them knew exactly what I was talking about.
For the others; I quickly clarified that it’s not called that in a derogatory way. We Dubs are very proud of our Gay Spar. So lemme tell you a little about Dublin’s Gay Spar.
There it is: right next to the George, Dublin’s oldest gay bar. Okay, you say. But you can’t just Gayify a Spar based on proximity.
Oh no my friends. The George’s LGBT patrons gayified it. And Gay Spar itself is very aware of and proud of its status as Gay Spar. Even Google knows what’s up:
If you want to know more about Dublin’s very own (and maybe the world’s only) Gay Spar they have a Twitter & Instagram.
hi sorry for this extremely long rant but i just have to finally be able to talk to someone because i am so?? tired??? of not being allowed to say literally fucking anything????? like there literally are so incredibly few words a-specs have permission to use on this website or else we have to face The Discourse Police and i’m so goddamn tired of it?
i can’t say that i’m ace, no matter the context, because ew that’s tmi nobody wants to know about my sex life, i need to learn my place and realize that my orientation is too filthy for decent people to discuss in public. i can’t say that i’m aro either because everyone knows all aros on earth are just misogynistic frat boys and why would i want to associate with that toxic community anyway? actually ace and aro are both useless labels, and also they’re homophobic and inherently bigoted and no good person would use them even if they felt ace or aro because the community is evil, so really it’s best never to use either word at all. if someone asks what my orientation is i’m supposed to just. fucking scream i guess.
i can’t say that i was raped for being ace (and can’t even THINK the words “corrective rape”), even though my rapist literally told me that was the reason and that he could fix me, because i guess i’m just too fucking stupid to understand the circumstances around my own abuse and need random internet strangers to explain my own experiences to me and what the REAL reason was, because my rape is just a talking point in the tumblr #ace discourse.
i can’t talk about my rape or other abuse at all actually, because if i do i’m either lying/exaggerating or i’m guilt tripping and being manipulative and trying to bully my way into the community by preying on people’s emotions. but if i DON’T talk about my abuse then it never happened and can never possibly happen to any a-spec ever because other people said so and, hello, where’s the proof that aces are ever abused?
i can’t talk about how my mother asked why i couldn’t have just been gay instead of aroace (“i can tell people my kid is gay, how am i supposed to explain that you just don’t love anyone? that’s soulless, they’re going to think i did something terrible to you to make you that way”), because that’s a disgusting lie and an anomaly and mentioning it or acknowledging that it was a real thing that actually happened to me is violently homophobic and gross, and it’s not like anyone ever asked me to talk about it or prove that it happened (except when they do) and i’m probably lying anyway.
i can’t say the word allo or people who don’t know what that word means will come crawling out of the woodwork to tell me how it is Bad and Homophobic and Wrong based on the incorrect definition they decided on, so i have to other myself by saying non-ace instead. BUT, sometimes someone will come along and remind me that i’m not supposed to say that either because wow, don’t i know that saying someone isn’t asexual is implying that they’re very sexual and their orientation is inherently sexual and i must think all those Dirty Allos™ are just thinking about sex all the time, why am i so goddamn homophobic?
i can’t use words created for me as an aro person like squish or qpr, even though i need them, because lol don’t i know those words are useless and stupid and just jokes because people who don’t need them decided they are? better not even think about saying them unless i want my post derailed into a joke fest by discoursers trying to play “how many csa survivors can i trigger and upset in one post”.
i can’t talk about how i knew that i was different and weird from as young as nine or ten, because gross don’t i know that only literal pedophiles believe someone can know they’re ace before they’re eighteen? i can’t even THINK about how little fifth grade me used to cry alone in my room wondering what was wrong with me and if i really was a freak or a baby like the other kids said i was because i’d never had a crush, or else i’m a fucking pedophile and also probably homophobic somehow.
i can’t make positivity posts, can’t tell members of my community that they’re great and valid and not broken because gross why am i enabling a horrible community like the ace one, and lol cishets don’t even need positivity? also no matter what the post is about and no matter how much i don’t mention being lgbt+ at all, it will still inevitably get derailed to “k but aces aren’t lgbt” so if it’s not a good mental health night i probably shouldn’t make a positivity post at all, because lol aces don’t deserve simple positivity or validation without Discourse attached.
i can’t talk about aphobia because it doesn’t exist, and i still haven’t learned my lesson re: internet strangers knowing my experiences better than i do i guess, but most importantly i can’t talk about aphobia happening in real life because i’m just lying or making shit up to guilt trip people, and if i happen to get caught saying that irl lgbt+ spaces are more inclusive than tumblr then somehow i’ve just admitted that aphobia doesn’t actually exist in any context and no one actually hates aces or aros, wow discourse is done, everyone can go home.
i can’t talk about the split attraction model at all unless i’m calling out how terrible and awful it is, because someone once had internalized homophobia and that is the fault of not only the model itself but also of every person who uses the model or finds it helpful, and Good Aces don’t condone the sam (even though without it i literally can’t exist in discourse land because ace and aro are both only modifiers, not orientations, so i guess i don’t have an orientation and am just a void with two modifiers both modifying nothing, but i can’t talk about that either unless i want to get called cishet and yelled at for tokenizing aro people, why does The Ace Community hate aros so much?).
i can’t say “gatekeeping”, can’t use the actuallyasexual tag, can’t say “space ace”, can’t use certain *literal memes* because every word an ace ever says is somehow stealing from someone or somehow homophobic or is just generally Bad in some vague way nobody ever fucking explains.
and i am just. tired. really, really goddamn fucking tired. it feels like that’s the only word that can describe how i feel about everything at this point, so i guess i should say it as much as i can now before someone comes along to take the word ‘tired’ away from my a-spec ass too.
Of Fire and Stars & Of Ice and Shadows by Audrey Coulthurst
Betrothed since childhood to the prince of Mynaria, Princess Dennaleia has always known what her future holds. Her marriage will seal the alliance between Mynaria and her homeland, protecting her people from other hostile lands. But Denna has a secret. She possesses an Affinity for fire—a dangerous gift for the future queen of a kingdom where magic is forbidden.
Now, Denna must learn the ways of her new home while trying to hide her growing magic. To make matters worse, she must learn to ride Mynaria’s formidable warhorses before her coronation—and her teacher is the person who intimidates her most, the prickly and unconventional Princess Amaranthine (called Mare), sister of her betrothed.
When a shocking assassination leaves the kingdom reeling, Mare and Denna reluctantly join forces to search for the culprit. As the two work together, each discovers there’s more to the other than she thought. Mare is surprised by Denna’s intelligence and bravery, while Denna is drawn to Mare’s independent streak. Soon their friendship is threatening to blossom into something more.
But with dangerous conflict brewing that makes the alliance more important than ever, acting on their feelings could be deadly. Forced to choose between their duty and their hearts, Mare and Denna must find a way to save their kingdoms—and each other.
Second one of the bunch, we have Marceline and Princess Bubblegum! ^^
Gosh I love them so much <3 I watched the series and it’s unbelievable how much chemistry they had throughout the whole series, but the writers kept it “ambiguous” until the finale (I’m not counting the specials after). I know it has to do with the network and whatever, but still… Anyway! Glad they ended up together at least <3
It’s not the best picture and I’m sorry, I took it at night cause I had no other choice
Pride Month 2022: [PREVIOUS] | Part 2: Bubbline | [NEXT]
in celebration of pride month here’s another lgbt artist music rec, consisting of artists of color who i’ve noticed haven’t gotten much recognition on other posts like this:
mnek
black gay singer and songwriter who makes infectious pop and dance music
cakes da killa
black gay rapper who makes upbeat hip-hop music that easily gets you hype and makes you wanna dance
vardaan arora
gay indian singer who makes pop music with light, moody vibes that make you feel like you’re floating, all while listening to insightful lyrics
le1f
black gay rapper whose music is very much inspired by drag and ballroom culture
big freedia
ICONIQUE black gay rapper who makes BOPS from the new orleans genre of hip hop music called bounce music
princess nokia
black bisexual rapper with a nice flow who makes mostly hip hop music but recently ventured into new territory and put out a rock type mixtape
kaytranada
one of my fave producers who really deserves more recognition! he’s a black gay producer and dj who is a collab king and makes smooth, soul-snatching beats. he has a very signature style so that you can immediately tell when a song is produced by him, no matter the genre
kelela
like idk why sis has been left off so many lists??? but she’s a self-identified queer black singer who makes amazing electro r&b music with a voice that just lifts you higher and higher
syd
black lesbian r&b singer who’s also a part of the group ‘the internet’ and her music sound lowkey gives me aaliyah vibe. imo had one of the top 5 best albums of 2017
shea diamond
black trans soul and r&b singer with a powerful voice whose music is very soothing
quay dash
black trans rapper who raps with braggadocio b/c she knws she’s that bicth !
taylor bennett
black bisexual rapper whose voice and flow easily floats on beats
tiffany gouché
black lesbian singer who makes slow tempo, sensual r&b music
leo kalyan
gay muslim british-pakistani singer that makes dreamy pop music
siya
black lesbian rapper who’s very vocal about mental health and has a care-free attitude that shines through in her music
sofya wang
gay chinese-american singer and songwriter whose music is very melodic and vibrant
It was very pleasing to see all these women emerge on tv in recent years. Taking viewers into the complicated lives of women who are often overlooked. All these actresses have touched hearts and affected lives deeply for just their authenticity and visibility. Not to mention, all are incredible actresses who actually deserve their roles and many more.
Follows two women who re-encounter each other after 30 years apart. Against all odds, they fall in love once again, and despite that youth is no longer on their side, they decide to spend the remaining of their twilight years in each other’s arms, no matter how much that may be
The film was inspired by the life story of Huang Hsiao-Ning (黃曉寧) aka “Taiwanese Mrs. Elvis”, written and directed by Natasha Sung, who had once made a documentary on Huang. Huang Hsiao-Ning was once the most influential female figure of Taiwanese rock and roll. Tammy Darshana Lai’s role “uncle Martha” is based on Huang, whose voice was explosive, emotional, and recognizable since the 60s
You can read this article to learn more about the singer and find some singing clips here (or by searching up the name in chinese)
It’s June! Which for me means Pride Month, staying cool with endless smoothies, and posting a round-up of LGBTQ PoC young adult reads. This year, let’s take a look at some YA books centering QPoC characters that came out in 2021 so far… plus a couple launching this summer! Of course, this is by no means a comprehensive list. With that said, here we go!
Last Night at the Telegraph Club by Malinda Lo Acclaimed author of Ash Malinda Lo returns with her most personal and ambitious novel yet, a gripping story of love and duty set in San Francisco’s Chinatown during the Red Scare.
The Mirror Season by Anna-Marie McLemore When two teens discover that they were both sexually assaulted at the same party, they develop a cautious friendship through her family’s possibly magical pastelería, his secret forest of otherworldly trees, and the swallows returning to their hometown, in Anna-Marie McLemore’s The Mirror Season… Graciela Cristales’s whole world changes after she and a boy she barely knows are assaulted at the same party. She loses her gift for making enchanted pan dulce. Neighborhood trees vanish overnight, while mirrored glass appears, bringing reckless magic with it. And Ciela is haunted by what happened to her, and what happened to the boy whose name she never learned. But when the boy, Lock, shows up at Ciela’s school, he has no memory of that night, and no clue that a single piece of mirrored glass is taking his life apart. Ciela decides to help him, which means hiding the truth about that night. Because Ciela knows who assaulted her, and him. And she knows that her survival, and his, depend on no one finding out what really happened.
Zara Hossain Is Here by Sabina Khan Zara’s family has waited years for their visa process to be finalized so that they can officially become US citizens. But it only takes one moment for that dream to come crashing down around them.
Hani and Ishu’s Guide to Fake Dating by Adiba Jaigirdar Everyone likes Humaira “Hani” Khan—she’s easy going and one of the most popular girls at school. But when she comes out to her friends as bisexual, they invalidate her identity, saying she can’t be bi if she’s only dated guys. Panicked, Hani blurts out that she’s in a relationship…with a girl her friends absolutely hate—Ishita “Ishu” Dey. Ishu is the complete opposite of Hani. She’s an academic overachiever who hopes that becoming head girl will set her on the right track for college. But Ishita agrees to help Hani, if Hani will help her become more popular so that she stands a chance of being elected head girl.Despite their mutually beneficial pact, they start developing real feelings for each other. But relationships are complicated, and some people will do anything to stop two Bengali girls from achieving happily ever after.
Meet Cute Diary by Emery Lee Felix Ever After meets Becky Albertalli in this swoon-worthy, heartfelt rom-com about how a transgender teen’s first love challenges his ideas about perfect relationships.
Ace of Spades by Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé Out now, as of yesterday! (or June 10th in the UK!) Gossip Girl meets Get Out in Ace of Spades, a YA contemporary thriller by debut author Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé about two students, Devon & Chiamaka, and their struggles against an anonymous bully.
Love & Other Natural Disasters by Misa Sugiura Out June 8th! When Nozomi Nagai pictured the ideal summer romance, a fake one wasn’t what she had in mind. That was before she met the perfect girl. Willow is gorgeous, glamorous, and…heartbroken? And when she enlists Nozomi to pose as her new girlfriend to make her ex jealous, Nozomi is a willing volunteer. Because Nozomi has a master plan of her own: one to show Willow she’s better than a stand-in, and turn their fauxmance into something real. But as the lies pile up, it’s not long before Nozomi’s schemes take a turn toward disaster…and maybe a chance at love she didn’t plan for.
Gearbreakers by Zoe Hana Mikuta Out June 29th Two girls on opposite sides of a war discover they’re fighting for a common purpose–and falling for each other–in Zoe Hana Mikuta’s high-octane debut Gearbreakers, perfect for fans of Pacific Rim, Pierce Brown’s Red Rising Saga, and Marie Lu’s Legend series.
Rise to the Sun by Leah Johnson Out July 6th! Three days. Two girls. One life-changing music festival. Olivia is an expert at falling in love … and at being dumped. But after the fallout from her last breakup has left her an outcast at school and at home, she’s determined to turn over a new leaf. A crush-free weekend at Farmland Music and Arts Festival with her best friend is just what she needs to get her mind off the senior year that awaits her. Toni is one week away from starting college, and it’s the last place she wants to be. Unsure about who she wants to become and still reeling in the wake of the loss of her musician-turned-roadie father, she’s heading back to the music festival that changed his life in hopes that following in his footsteps will help her find her own way forward. When the two arrive at Farmland, the last thing they expect is to realize that they’ll need to join forces in order to get what they’re searching for out of the weekend. As they work together, the festival becomes so much more complicated than they bargained for, and Olivia and Toni will find that they need each other, and music, more than they ever could have imagined.
Always dreamed of this, but never thought I’d actually get to do it
[VD: A tiktok video of SuperKNova. She is sitting on a bedroom and looking pensive. The song playing is her own, “LSD Heartbreak”. The video starts with the muffled build up. The subtitles say “Me thinking about how when I was younger, I didn’t know any Asian queer pop musicians. And how much it would have meant to me if I could have been one growing up.” She changes her expression, now more determined. The drop is almost there and the subtitles now say “Realising now I am one” Fragments of her “Goals” videoclip and live performance at Schubas appear until the video ends. End of VD]
So apparently last year the National Park Service in the US dropped an over 1200 page study of LGBTQ American History as part of their Who We Are program which includes studies on African-American history, Latino history, and Indigenous history.
Like. This is awesome. But also it feels very surreal that maybe one of the most comprehensive examinations of LGBTQ history in America (it covers sports! art! race! historical sites! health! cities!) was just casually done by the parks service.
If you’re a US resident it honestly is worth learning about the different agencies and what they’re up to, because there are hidden gems like this everywhere. For example, I was completely unsurprised by the Parks Service putting this out because National Monuments count as “parks” and the Parks Department also oversees National Historic Landmarks and the National Register of Historic Places. They help maintain the Stonewall Inn and the Henry Gerber and Harvey Milk Houses, as well as several historic gay bars and queer community buildings. Of course they’d be the ones to put this out, their job is preserving places that are culturally and historically significant. But you’d never know it because the less people are taught about the way the government works, the less input they have into how they want their representatives to push for funding.
And also, government agencies like the Parks Service are made up of everyday people in a way that Congress and the Senate and the presidency are not. They’re flawed because they’re connected to the US government, but they’re also a chance to see your taxes going to people like you (in this case queer folks), who care about their work and making a difference and using the power they’ve been given to lift each other up. And for me, learning about these agencies and the work they do has really helped my mental health at some important moments. The other one is the USDA, but it’s not related to queer history, so I’ll save that info dump for another post.
A message from Miss Major (ft. Janet Mock!) for TDoV - worth sharing for Pride as well
Transcript:
MM - “Trans youth, they’ve got to stand up and not take this bullshit from straight men who don’t know nothing about transition… at all.“
JM - “Bam! And that’s word from your mother.”
[laughter]
Nice, but –
at what point are people going to realize that "straight men” or “straight people” is not, in fact, the opposite of “transgender people”, as that implies transgender is a sexuality and constantly completely shuts the many straight transgender people that exist (including straight men) out of every discussion about them?
while i understand your perspective, i gotta say. maybe lets not nitpick the language of a trans elder and stonewall veteran who has just suffered a stroke. we understood what she was getting at, and miss major is herself attracted to men. there are also trans people who, while yeah being hetero, don’t consider themselves Straight as they’re not able to access straight privilege or truly move through the world as a straight person — especially with older lgbt people you will find Straight often used to mean cishet. these differences between generations can often be startling but it’s all the more reason to extend grace to our elders and connect with their perspectives as well ♥️
^Agreed. When Miss Major began her fight it was called Gay liberation, trans people were not accepted as part of the straight world (and arguably I think still aren’t today), being trans was considered inherently gay-or queer- regardless of the person’s sexual orientation, and you have to take that into consideration. Plus, actions are more important than correct language in this community, and I think we can all agree that Miss Major and her contempories’ actions for our rights speak for themselves.
