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 (and occasionally about the Latinx/WOC community since I am Latinx.) Welcome to Queerly Not Straight! And for the month of June we’ll be posting an EXTRA dose of LGBTQ+ goodness on Thursdays!
Taylor Swift’s “You Need to Calm Down” is a rallying call meant to let the LGBTQ+ community know that Tay Tay has their back. And instead of looking at it for the amazing gesture it is, there’s been a lot of commotion online and in the queer community that Taylor Swift is just pandering to the queer community or using us to get a leg up. And I call bullshit.
This young woman has star power. And instead of sticking to her country roots and abstaining from talking about political things, Taylor Swift is like, “FUCK IT. I’M GOING TO SUPPORT WHAT I WANT AND THE PEOPLE THAT I CARE ABOUT!” And that should be applauded, not looked down upon, in a time where it’s a luxury to stay mum on political issues.
Using her star power to let haters know that she backs the queer community is her taking a stand. And I love it. I wish more celebrities would do this and admire Taylor Swift for having so many important influencers in the LGBTQ+ community inside of her video for “You Need to Calm Down.” That shows that she’s not only taking a stand but she’s using her platform to be like, “Look at these amazing people you should check out!” And that matters and shows the direction she plans on going in her life.
Our girl is acting like an ally and not like the queen of everything the light touches like she’s some sort of pseudo Simba on Pride Rock. Billy Porter, Laverne Cox, Hayley Kiyoko, and the men of Queer Eye are the queer icons and Tay Tay knows it. That’s why they’re front and center in positions of awe, reverence, and power. They are the ones that truly matter in the fight to make change for the LGBTQ+ community and she wants her followers to know that.
On another front, I’ve seen people brushing off Taylor Swift as “just a girl.” (This is something that pops up every once in a while because when in doubt, call a young woman “just a girl” when you want to discredit her work.) Taylor Swift is not “just a girl.” She’s a young woman who has been an inspiration to countless young women who will now have the ability to vote in the next election. So her coming out to support the LGBTQ+ community should be applauded by her supporters and feared by her haters because Taylor Swift has the power to create change and she knows it.
So, keep popping off haters. Keep trying to discredit Taylor Swift. Keep trying to discredit what she’s done for the LGBTQ+ community and the doors she’s opening to create acceptance, love, and respect in this generation and the next. Keep at it. Because you think you might be loud enough to change my mind or that of the people who like Taylor Swift. You’re not and we can clearly see what’s going on here. And we support this young woman.
We support Taylor Swift.
We support the LGBTQ+ community.
Queerly Not Straight posts every Tuesday (AND THURSDAYS FOR PRIDE MONTH) with opinion pieces, listicals, reviews, and more focused on the LGBT community (and occasionally about the Latinx community since I am Latinx.)
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