'Queer'

I don't think it really fits me so I wouldn't use it for myself, but I wouldn't really have a problem if somebody where to identify me as such. I guess I'd be confused as to why they thought it was an accurate term for me, but I wouldn't be offended by it or anything. I think it's a great word, precisely because it fits so many people, especially when no other 'label' seems comfortable.

 

hmm I don't think I would like to refer myself as queer, sounds like an odd word to use idk why

 

i have always loved the word!
my first time hearing it was a children's mystery book that had nothing bad in it. Something Queer is Going On. It was about a stolen Llasha Apso, and 2 kids were trying find it. It was the favorite line of one girl. My mom said not to use it. But I thought what a cool Q word, for weird!

Well unfortunately I have been called by friends WIERD and told by ex-friend that "you admit that you are DIFFERENT don't you?"


When I looked up on Wikipedia the definition of Queer, it said an umbrella term for sexual minorities, who are not heterosexual, or gender-binary. So it covers Lesbianism, Gayness, Bisexuality, and Transgenderism all in one word.

It used to be used derogatorily against people like us, maybe back when we were born. But recent years there was a reclaiming of it as positive. Just think how some white people react when one black man greets another not as Homie but as my Nigga! Yeah, the straights have used queer as a way to say we are weird and in a bad way cuz we don't conform to the norm, but WE can say it as Queer and proudly cuz we have a right to hold our heads high because we are being true to ourselves and not cowering in fear.

Like I said, I loved the word and was told to use weird or strange not queer to speak about things that are odd or different. But now I have all the facts, I am happy that instead of thinking of myself all the time as being weird, I can in my mind say, No, Im Queer! And that makes me good, not bad, set apart from the norm, special.

 

I would, and have.

When referring to the community as a whole, I like it a lot better than the unruly string of letters. And while the word was used offensively for a while, I don't think the inherent meaning is offensive.

But then, I'm strongly of the opinion that being different or eccentric isn't bad. I've always felt different from other people, and mostly I like it.

 

I have a female mind, a male's body- which happens to have pieces of my ribs, hip, and pieces of metal, including a few loose screws- and I like both guys and girls.

I'm Queer in every sense of the word.

 

I wouldn't mind if someone that actually understood what it means used it towards me but I personally don't like the word because the only way that it has ever been used around me is in an offensive way. If any of that makes sense.

 

^ yet another gay Ohio person. Something QUEER about that....hmmm...

 

I love to word queer. It's an open word meaning it has no borders. I like it. I use it all the time. If asked are you gay. I say queer. This word made it easier for me to comfortbale with myself. i'm not all the way out although more people guess, and know.

I really like the word. In my opinion the word queer also says "mind your on buisness"

I love it!

 

^ agreed 100%! It makes me feel better about myself. I want to say it out loud someday. Im Queer, not weird.

 

I like it.
I prefer the term more than lesbian tbh. Just because like those above me have said, its so diverse in its meaning. I feel like although the word Queer has connotations attached its nothing like the stereotypes/specific connotations attached with lesbian (or even maybe gay & bi.. for that matter).


I don't really use the word that much though. The opinions of people within and outside the community regarding its use are as diverse as the meaning.

 

depends which definition source you read, and which definition you read it to mean for yourself. I think it is far more desirable, and interesting and as many said all encompassing. Also, since i don't know 100% for sure exactly what i am especially sexually, Queer is a lable I can accept in my brain where other terms I fear will need removed if turns out artificial. I hate lying or being fake, so with Queer i am safe, covered all bases!

And who says I aint deranged??

 

i hate that a lot of people try to use it as an insult or derogatory term towards our community. I catch some of my less careful friends saying similar things like "that is so gay!" or "No Homo..." and have to constantly remind them that thats not how its meant to be used. I share the same feelings for "Queer".... However' I hate it when the words "faggot" or "Dyke" are used to demean people the most. i doubt i am the only one who feels like this. As long as it is a positive or honest reference, I am fine with it.

 

a looonggg time ago, before i knew any gays and only my dead cousin was gay and i didn't know it, i did not like to hear "thats so gay!" either. funny, cuz i was conservative and the liberal friends did it! i asked them why they do that, isn't it mean? and one of them made a strange excuse, she said it is not gay we are saying GEH! so that i can read when she talks? like phat for fat? you call some woman phat and she will clobber you before you can make that excuse, and i think any person who says GEH in such i mean way deserves same. and i was not even a gay ally and i knew better! GEEE!!

 

Like Chip, I think it is a generational thing. I don't mind the word, but in the beginning I had trouble with it because of its (now mostly former I think) derogatory use. I don't really hear or see words like Queer, or hell - even Dyke - which used to also be extremely derogatory being thrown around like they used too. Most of the time now, it's always fag or faggot, which I hate. Though ironically, it doesn't bother me much when other gay people use it.

I sometimes use the word Queer when talking about the LGBT community, and use them interchangeably. However, I wouldn't refer to myself as queer individually - I'd call myself gay, and I do. I'd find it offensive if a straight person came to me and asked if I was a Queer, though ironically I wouldn't find it offensive if a gay person said something like, "Us Queer's have got to stick together." I also wouldn't find it offensive if a gay person said, "Us Fag's have got to stick together." Though I would find it offensive if a straight person said something like, "These are my Fag Friends."

Also, I'm not offended by the word "Faghag", though faghags often personally offend me due to their reliance on gay stereotypes.

So, yeah - that's a list of the stuff that offends me. It's somewhat contradictory, but there it is. I never claimed to make sense. :icon_razz

In the end, I think who says it and the context in which the words are used are the most important thing.

 

I ask people not to use it around me.

I find it and fag especially offensive, but as someone else said, I don't find the term faghag offensive, Lol. *shrug*

Words that I despise in regards to this conversation:

Queer
Fag/Faggot
Dyke
No Homo

I can't be the only one who would rather just be called gay or homosexual, rather than any term of slang that at one point or another, is/was considered offensive?

 

I actually hate being called a homosexual. LOL. It makes it feel like my sexuality is a mental disorder, which I guess would make sense considering that's the clinical origin of the word. Something inside of me just winces.

I identify as gay, and I prefer it if people refer to me as gay.

I'm fine with "homosexuality" and "homosexual" being used in a professional and clinical context, but for me being gay is more than just an act or behavior. It's about an identity, and being gay is a big part of who I am. Being gay has shaped the way that I view the world and find my place in it.

 

I don't like the word queer. At all. Not because it's offensive, I just don't like it and would most likely point out my distaste for it if somebody used it in reference to me.
Ironically, I don't mind being called a fag, and have referred to myself as "pretty faggy" before.

King x

EDIT:

✔

 

I generally associate the word with weirdness, i.e. "There;s something queer about this situation..." but naturally I don't think my sexuality is weird at all, hence I dislike it thoroughly.