"We're here! We're queer! Get used to it!"

I used to chant those words in the streets of New York City over 30 years ago, marching with other gay men, lesbians, trans folks, and anyone else sick of patriarchal oppression. (Specifically, as Queer Nation members, most of us were protesting police inaction in the face of street violence targeting members of gender and sexual minorities.)

We shouted the word queer partly for shock value, partly to reclaim a slur, partly to name a powerful community made up of wildly diverse people sharing common interests and aspirations.

I'm delighted that our third usage took off all over the world, even though many older LGBTQ folks still don't use the word because of the trauma they associate with it.

I loved your essay. Keep em coming!