In an effort to build a space for queer people like myself, every Tuesday I’ll be posting opinion pieces, listicals, reviews, and more focused on the LGBT community. Welcome to the first post for Queerly Not Straight! Enjoy and leave a comment below if you have a suggestion for what I should cover next.
You don’t understand how truly deprived you are until you get the representation you’ve always seen others around you get.
This Sunday we were gifted with the premiere of Vida, a tale of two sisters coming home and having to deal with a deceased hypocritical Latina mom who was married to a woman, and we were also gifted with an episode of Timeless focusing on a queer woman of color and her importance to the overall mission and show. Now, I’ve always craved more queer characters of color. And I’ve always known that we’ve been sorely lacking in any representation of the LGBT community. But until this Sunday, I didn’t realize how truly deprived I was or how amazing it feels to see women like yourself finding love, dealing with coming out, and just living your life like everyone else.
And I know that others have already had a moment like this, but bear with me, hold my hand, and let me share what this means to me.
Vida and Timeless have made me feel blessed, hungry, excited, and like it’s possible for me to see more of stories like my own on TV, in theaters, and in the books I devour on a weekly basis. Because shows like this that make you feel comfortable in your own skin, like you’re not an outsider, and that you deserve the same love and happiness as everyone else, are life altering. Shows like this are comforting therapy for that little boy, girl, or non-binary person who has never seen themselves on screen or thought that TV/movies even cared enough to tell their stories in the first place.
Vida cares.
Timeless cares.
And if these two shows can give me the representation my queer heart never knew it so desperately needed to just keep breathing, imagine if we keep going? Imagine if we allow other creators who just so happen to be LGBT and queer the chance to tell their stories and weave some amazing tales? The world wouldn’t fall into disarray as some feel when we accept and encourage different lifestyles from their own. The world would become a happier place, a more accepting place, a more understanding place.
I want to be blessed every Sunday like I was this week with Vida and Timeless. I want to keep this feeling of joy, happiness, and connection going. I don’t want it to stop when Sunday night is over. I want it to keep going in the shows I watch Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. I don’t want it to be relegated to one special date or be as mysterious as a unicorn on a full moon eating flan. Like the Little Mermaid said, “I wanttttt moreeeeee.”
Because seeing myself, a queer Latinx woman, isn’t just about me. If others see my story on screen and get to experience my love, woes, and character development, maybe they won’t be so afraid of the unknown anymore. Maybe they’ll understand that just because I’m queer doesn’t mean I’m not like everyone else. And we’ll end up all being more tolerant and loving as a society and people.
Point is, I know that telling queer stories is possible. I’ve always known. But this Sunday, it felt like a switch was flipped inside of me. It felt like hope and ACTUALLY understanding that seeing queer stories on screen can happen. I know that we can get in there, I know that we can write it, and I know that we can make it real. And that right there is hope and a brighter future for what I want to do for my future and for those that follow long after me.
Thank you Vida. Thank you Timeless. And thank you to anyone involved in making my Sunday truly blessed.
Queerly Not Straight posts every Tuesday with opinion pieces, listicals, reviews, and more focused on the LGBT community.
