11/1/2021 0 Comments Struck Out: A Coming Out StoryanonymousLiving in a Rainbowland. The skies are blue and things are grand. Wouldn't it be nice to live in paradise? Where we're free to be exactly who we are. Let's all dig down deep inside. Brush the judgment and fear aside. Make wrong things right. And end the fight. 'Cause I promise ain't nobody gonna win.
-Miley Cryus & Dolly Parton, “Rainbowland”
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11/1/2021 0 Comments Psycho Killer, Queer-est’ce Que C’est?: Trans and Gender Nonconforming Representation within “Psycho”Atticus Spicer (they/he)Allow me to set the scene. In leaving my bedroom after a Zoom that ends at approximately 9:30 p.m., I'm greeted by one of my roommates, who has decided to get his Friday night revelries started and is in the middle of noncommittally burning popcorn in our microwave. Somewhere along the course of our conversation, he mentions something about the Bates Motel. I pick up the bit, reference “Psycho” back, and am met with confusion— confusion beyond just a roommate who has started his celebration of the weekend earlier than me. Desperately, I try to jog his memory; I make vague stabbing motions with the sponge I’ve been using to clean the sink, I do a questionable impression of the film’s infamous theme, I explain that Janet Leigh, the actress who played Marion Crane, is THEE Jamie Lee Curtis’s mother. My efforts are fruitless; he’s not getting it.
Elessar Younglove (they/fae)Today I had the privilege to interview queer author and artist Isabel Scheck (she/her), or Izzy for short. Izzy is pan and ace, and at 23 years old she’s already a published writer! Her latest work, “Ace of Arts”, an ace spec art book, showcases her talent. The author describes her work as “a collection of artworks containing the different aspects of asexual, aromantic and other a-spec identities within the LGBTQ* community as a whole, shown in the form of abstract and aesthetic art pieces.”
Catherine Sullivan (she/her)Soccer has been a lifelong passion of mine. Growing up, making the varsity team one day was always my goal. But once I realized I was trans, things got complicated. Though I never ended up playing for a woman-only team, my experience around it could provide a look into this complicated and contentious issue.
4/1/2021 0 Comments The Deal With HormonesCate Sullivan (she/her) Hormone replacement therapy (HRT) has been in the news lately due to a slew of bills aiming to make it more difficult for trans people to use HRT for gender-affirming care. But what is HRT, and why is it so contentious?
Dyanna Bateman (she/her)Looking for some last minute classes to add to next semester? Here’s your guide to all the LGBTQ+ classes being offered at UM for Fall 2021.
Atticus Spicer (they/he)About a month had passed before I realized I was dissociated. Or maybe not, maybe a few weeks, maybe a few hours. I suppose that’s the whole point of being dissociated, that I didn’t really know what was going on around me. I vaguely remember phasing in and out of myself, and the sensation of partially coming to, staring at a couch in a home I partially lived in with my out of state parents. I felt listless, mildly uncomfortable, and wholly untethered for a not-insignificant amount of time.
3/1/2021 2 Comments Building Walls, Breaking Down Walls: Deconstructing the Myth of the Predatory Queer WomanGrey Weinstein (they/he) I am in my senior year of high school, and my best friend Charlie lowers her voice in a conspiratorial tone, the tone we both use to exchange gossip. Did I hear what Mary said? She found out that one of the girls in our class is bisexual, and she said that she’d never have a sleepover with a bi girl. That she can’t believe any straight girl would, it’s just so gross. Charlie and I are both far too old to have sleepovers anyway, so this does not present a particular problem for either of us. Nonetheless, I see the hurt reflected in Charlie’s eyes as she shares this story, and I feel my stomach clench. Mary is a mutual friend, a good friend, but I know that we’ll both watch what we say around her.
Atticus Spicer (they/he)In times of crisis, I often find myself turning to horror. On the night of the 2020 presidential election, I switched on Ari Aster’s latest film “Midsommar,” a delightfully unsettling and devastating slow-burn about a cult, and watched it from the early hours of 2 to 4:30 a.m. When I experienced a very abrupt and deeply traumatic loss in early 2018, I became utterly obsessed with “Hereditary”-- also an Aster film-- and the seriously wonderful horror podcast Dead Meat, which is coincidentally hosted by two UMich alums. And when the COVID-19 pandemic stripped me of all hope of continuing my life in the direction I had so carefully charted for years, I began consuming all the worst horror films I could find; most recently, that list has seen the addition of “Willy’s Wonderland,” a movie in which a silent Nic Cage beats the ever-loving shit out of numerous possessed children’s entertainment animatronics.
The Brothers of Kappa Omega Alpha Pre-Law FraternityThe recent inauguration of President Joe Biden has placed a new focus on LGBTQ+ legal rights. Biden has already begun to pass executive orders, and to show support for bills emphasizing inclusivity for queer individuals. It has not been an easy road getting to this point; LGBTQ+ representation before law has faced numerous wins and losses in the past century. This article aims to give readers a brief roadmap of some of those wins and losses, including landmark legislation, legal cases, and arrests which dictated the queer community’s role in larger society. The story of LGBTQ+ rights in the U.S. is one that continues to develop, and while the current administration has made promising commitments, the fight is far from over. The need for queer representation in governemnt is more apparent than ever.
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