Beyond the Rainbow 10.08.2015
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Hridi Das
University of Windsor : 103627098 Practical Strategies for Social Change Dr. Dusty Johnstone
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Preface The flag on the cover represents the MOGAI community. MOGAI is an acronym for Marginalized Orientations, Genders, and Intersex and is slowly replacing the more well-known term as LGBT(+). Due to how the word ‘queer’ is used as a slur, I will be using the MOGAI acronym throughout my project, branching off to different sexualities and gender-identities as necessary.
Definition 1. Sexual harassment : “ engaging in a course of vexatious comment or conduct that is known or ought to be known to be unwelcome” (verbatim from the Ontario Human Rights Code, 2013) 2. Gender-based harassment towards MOGAI individuals : behaviors that are committed because of a person's gender or sex and a ny behaviour that polices and reinforces traditional heterosexual gender norms.
Description Unlike some other forms of sexual harassment, gender-based harassment is not generally motivated by sexual interest or intent. It is more often based on hostility and is often an attempt to make the target feel unwelcome in their environment. In some cases, gender-based harassment may look the same as harassment based on sexual orientation, or homophobic bullying. Many claims alleging gender-based harassment may also cite discrimination and/or harassment based on gender expression. Depending on the circumstances, it may be appropriate to cite gender identity as well. Whilst there is a difference between sexual-orientation based harassment and gender-identity based harassment, the discrimination from both tends to overlap.
Sexual Orientation Sexual orientation is a personal characteristic that forms part of who you are. It covers the range of human sexuality from lesbian and gay, to bisexual and heterosexual.
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Galtung’s Tripartite Model of Violence I.
Cultural violence → Direct Violence Cultural violence is the prevailing attitudes and beliefs that we have been taught since childhood and that surround us in daily life about the power and necessity of violence. Much of the cultural norms center around heteronormativity and cissexual identity, which gives the foundation for the direct violence directed towards MOGAI individuals. Heterosexuals have a long history of oppressing and erasing MOGAI people and their stories to the point where only heteronormativity (as the word suggests) is ‘normal’. It also has roots in the gender binary (that there can only be female and male) and because of the prescribed gender roles that are packaged with that, anyone who strays from that is automatically questioned for their authenticity as a human being. Heterosexism is defined as the cultural ideology that perpetuates sexual stigma by denying and denigrating any nonheterosexual form of behavior, identity, relationship, or community (Rabelo & Cortina, 2014). refers to macro-level anti-MOGAI attitudes (. Video to watch : Little Game by Bennie
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II.
Structural violence → Direct Violence Structural violence exists when some groups, classes, genders, nationalities, etc are assumed to have, and in fact do have, more access to goods, resources, and opportunities than other groups, classes, genders, nationalities, etc, and this unequal advantage is built into the very social, political and economic systems that govern societies, states and the world. These tendencies may be overt such as Apartheid or more subtle such as traditions or tendency to award some groups privileges over another. For example, MOGAI people of colour (PoC) have their own unique experience due to their intersectionality as a gender and race minority. We sexually objectify PoC folks, ignore PoC voices, decide that they are “not queer enough”, and appropriate PoC culture. When we do that, we become complicit in creating a society based on white supremacy. For example, consider the case of South Asian MOGAI individuals. Those individuals experience multiple forms of marginalization, which can be explained by minority stress theory (Sandil et. al, 2015). Minority stress theory can be explained by the way of internal and external stressors. External stressors are experiences of implicit or explicit discrimination based on one’s minority statuses (e.g., heterosexist discrimination and racist events), whereas internal stressors include internalized heterosexism, concealment of sexual identity (or degree of outness), perceptions of stigma, and emotional inhibition.
Prevalence In the following pages, I will be exploring the impact of gender-based harassment with respect to select (more common) marginalized identities. Using a variety of media as my reference points, I will try to provide a small glimpse into the experiences of the MOGAI community.
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Lesbian S teven Universe , an animated TV series on Cartoon Network, has garnered praise for the plethora of MOGAI characters. Pictured left is the leader, Garnet (the leader of the Crystal Gems) is made from Ruby and Sapphire ( watch their fusion here! ). It’s clear that both gems identify as MOGAI however, from the planet Garnet is from, fusion is looked down upon. This is a direct parallel to how those who identify as lesbians in our society are treated.
( Charice Pempengco , right) Charice is a Filipina singer who rose to fame after appearing on Oprah, the tv show Glee and performing with the likes of Celine Dion. Last year, she told the media that she identifies as a lesbian and her soul is male. After the news broke, she and her mother were not on good terms. My friend, Dalzel (of Filipino descent) provides insight: “It's a sin and basically all sorts or wrong. Like it was compared to beastility, at one point. A lot of religious sectors are discouraging people to have anything to do with it. Lots of anti-gay families...There have been instances (according to lgbt seminars) where a lot of them are being forced to "convert" you know their parents or someone else forcing them to be with a guy. Sometimes rape occurs...“
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Gay “ I guess sexuality wise because LGBT don't fit within binary gender norms. There have been several occasions where people will harass me over appearances (clothes, hair, makeup, etc.) because I don't fit in either one and it's easy to criticize the other...all the straight people were upset about it because they thought we were being discriminatory and uninclusive. I guess because I'm asian and queer i'm more "rare" especially because I speak English so there's a large power dynamic when I'm with other people. I'm also either fetishized or completely ignored.” -
Personal narrative from my friend, Jason
Supplemental video to consider : What’s It Like to Come Out to Immigrant Parents
( Adam Lambert , singer) Adam first started out as a contestant on American Idol back in 2009. He’s always been open about his sexuality and back when he announced it on the show, many said that he was ‘disabled’. That in and of itself, is ableist as it erases the experiences of people with disabilities. However, he states that recently it’s not as big of a deal as it was back then.
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Bisexual “One of the biggest factors of me denying this i think, was a boy decided to tell people he was bi when i was in grade 6..kids said he was only saying it for attention, and that you can only like girls or boys, not both..and he got bullied pretty bad, and didn't go to the same high school as most of us..i'm not sure if that's why, or if he moved, or if there were other factor..but that's what sticks out to me” -
Personal narrative from my friend, Erica
( Margaret Cho , right) The controversial comedian, actress and author speaks very candidly about the criticism she faces as an openly identifying bisexual. In this video , she discusses self-criticism with the label of ‘bisexual’ as it goes beyond a binary gender attraction. Bisexuals are often harassment about ‘being greedy’ or ‘can’t swing both ways’ when referring to their partner preferences. Within both the heterosexual and homosexual communities, bisexuals (along with pansexuals) are often seen as untrustworthy.
“If anything, I understand Korean culture better than most, because I have had to fight against much of its homophobia, fatphobia, sexism, racism –- all the while trying to maintain my fierce ethnic pride.”
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Transgender Another member of the Crystal Gems in the show Steven Universe , Pearl is insulted by another gem to be ‘defective’ and a traitor to their Homeworld. Essentially, she is at the bottom of the hierarchy. Given her colour scheme coding, it brings to light a major dehumanizing issue transgender people face : being seen as an abnormality, imperfection in creation, a tear in the fabric of society.
( Laverne Cox , left) Actress and activist, Laverne made history as the first Black transgender woman to land a cover on Time magazine. With her intersectionality of marginalization, she was extensively shamed and bullied growing up. Even now with all her success, she is more often asked about her surgeries rather than her work. Watch video here : Interview with Katie Couric.
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Asexual The third member of the Crystal Gems in Steven Universe , Amethyst shows no interest in anything resembling romantic or sexual attraction.
(An excerpt from my blog post). Sex is normalized by society to be a mandatory part in all romantic relationships. Due to that, I often hesitate in telling others that I am asexual and am uncomfortable at the idea of partaking in sex. I’ve never been in a romantic relationship and I do fear that I will never be able to experience that due to my sexual orientation. Even in MOGAI discussions, I fear that I will be told that I’m not ‘queer’ enough, that my struggles aren’t real (because it’s a competition right?). I still get mildly annoyed when others try to counter and invalidate my sexuality with ‘But sex is part of human nature! You don’t know unless you try!”. I know that eating poison ivy will kill me - I don’t need to ‘try’ it to reaffirm that fact.
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Conclusion
MOGAI individuals come from all walks of life and face harassment based on a complex range of factors. Professionals should focus on the more nuanced differences in sexual harassment experiences among the diverse groups of sexual minority people. Motivations behind sexual harassment are likely evolving and need to be a focus of scrutiny, particularly among the complex developmental experiences of MOGAI people.
Contact Hridi D. at ​ dast@uwindsor.ca​ for a full list of references.