cross-posted from: https://poptalk.scrubbles.tech/post/531576

For those here who don’t know, there’s a conspiracy passed around from a small group of Taylor Swift’s fans that she is secretly queer and is too afraid/ashamed/unable to say it. They believe that she talks secretly to them through her music trying to let them know that she is not hetero and needs anything from support to convincing others that she is.

I’ll leave my small rant below about my swiftie feelings about it, but it just feels like a complete 180 from what the core ideals of LGBTQ+ are. To allow someone to feel comfortable with who they are, to not pressure anyone, to not pull anyone out of the closet, and to not be gossips.

All people close to Taylor that have spoken about the NYT piece have confirmed that everyone is shocked and angry about the piece, and of course they are. Even on the slight chance that she is queer (which open goes against what she herself has told everyone), how are you being an ally at all by dragging them out of the closet?

I think it was awful of @nytimes to publish. Triggering for me to read— not because the writer mentioned my nearly ending my life— but seeing a public person’s sexuality being discussed is upsetting.

I think the Gaylors should be ashamed of themselves. They are doing exactly what LGTBQ+ have fought against for decades now - people making assumptions about their own lives and sexuality - but they’re masking it because it’s Taylor.

I’m in the camp of anything that’s not public is just that - not public. Even if it were true (and all signs point to it not being true), then it’d be disrespectful of us to talk about it unless she made it public. Think about it, you’re going out of your way to talk about something that she explicitly has hidden from the rest of the world. That doesn’t make you a better fan, it makes you a gossip and not an ally.

/rant.

  • millie@beehaw.org
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    1 year ago

    To me the issue is that outing people is something that not only takes agency away from queer people (with a media landscape that, at best, commodifies their queerness) and can be potentially damaging to their personal lives. When someone comes out should be up to them, not up to whether it’s profitable to invade their privacy. It’s a major decision that can have a huge impact on their lives.

    Queer folks and allies are absolutely right to be wary of outing folks for money.