2. Ice Breaker How do you love? What is love? Family, friends, community, activism, partners/lovers, pets, etc…
3.
4. Heterosexual Questionnaire 1. What do you think caused your heterosexuality?2. When and how did you first decide you were a heterosexual?3. Is it possible your heterosexuality is just a phase you may grow out of?4. Could it be that your heterosexuality stems from a fear of others of the same sex? 5. If you’ve never slept with a person of the same sex, how can you be sure you wouldn’t prefer that? 6. Why do heterosexuals feel compelled to seduce others into their lifestyle? 7. Why do you insist on flaunting your heterosexuality? Can’t you just be what you are and keep it quiet?
5. Christianity (mainstream US Religion/) Some Christians condemn “homosexual” acts as sinful while others regard it as a natural, acceptable alternative. The debate centers on how the bible ought to be interpreted in light of textual criticism (i.e., historical context, meaning of words, etc.), modern sensibilities and modern science. Christianity and the bible have been and are directly used for the purpose of oppression and legal discrimination against many groups, including Queer people, people of African descent/slaves, women, etc.
6. Anti-gay laws Originated as Sodomy laws. “A sodomy law is a law that defines certain sexual acts as crimes. The precise sexual acts meant by the term sodomy are rarely spelled out in the law, but are typically understood by courts to include any sexual act deemed unnatural. These acts typically include oral sex, anal sex and bestiality; in practice such laws have rarely been enforced against heterosexual couples.”
7. (Genesis 19) Sodom and Gomorrah King James Version: “4: But before they lay down, the men of the city, even the men of Sodom, compassed the house round, both old and young, all the people from every quarter: 5: And they called unto Lot, and said unto him, Where are the men which came in to thee this night? bring them out unto us, that we may know them. 6: And Lot went out at the door unto them, and shut the door after him, 7: And said, I pray you, brethren, do not be so wickedly. 8: Behold now, I have two daughters which have not known man; let me, I pray you, bring them out unto you, and do ye to them as is good in your eyes: only unto these men do nothing; for therefore came they under the shadow of my roof. http://etext.virginia.edu/etcbin/toccer-new2?id=KjvGene.sgm&images=images/modeng&data=/texts/english/modeng/parsed&tag=public&part=19&division=div1 New International Version: “Before they had gone to bed, all the men from every part of the city of Sodom—both young and old—surrounded the house. 5 They called to Lot, “Where are the men who came to you tonight? Bring them out to us so that we can have sex with them.” 6 Lot went outside to meet them and shut the door behind him 7 and said, “No, my friends. Don’t do this wicked thing. 8 Look, I have two daughters who have never slept with a man. Let me bring them out to you, and you can do what you like with them. But don’t do anything to these men, for they have come under the protection of my roof.” www.biblegateway.com 24: Then the LORD rained on Sodom and Gomor'rah brimstone and fire from the LORD out of heaven;
8. Response to Sodom & Gomorrah http://www.whosoever.org/I2sodom.html This story does not describe consensual acts of same-sex love/desire. It tells the story of city that is set for destruction and is filled with rape and violence.
9. Leviticus 20 (International version) 9“Anyone who curses their father or mother is to be put to death. Because they have cursed their father or mother, their blood will be on their own head. 10If a man commits adultery with another man’s wife—with the wife of his neighbor—both the adulterer and the adulteress are to be put to death. 13“‘If a man has sexual relations with a man as one does with a woman, both of them have done what is detestable. They are to be put to death; their blood will be on their own heads. 18“‘If a man has sexual relations with a woman during her monthly period, he has exposed the source of her flow, and she has also uncovered it. Both of them are to be cut off from their people.
10. Leviticus 19:34 (NIV)-immigrants and Slaves. 34“The foreigner residing among you must be treated as your native-born. Love them as yourself, for you were foreigners in Egypt…” Exodus 22:21 21 “Do not mistreat or oppress a foreigner, for you were foreigners in Egypt.” 25:44 “Your male and female slaves are to come from the nations around you; from them you may buy slaves.”
11. 1 Timothy 11-15 (NIV) 11 A womanashould learn in quietness and full submission. 12 I do not permit a woman to teach or to assume authority over a man;bshe must be quiet. 13 For Adam was formed first, then Eve. 14 And Adam was not the one deceived; it was the woman who was deceived and became a sinner. 15 But women will be saved through childbearing—if they continue in faith, love and holiness with propriety. Footnotes: A. Or wife B. Or over her husband
12. Social construction of sexuality “There is no ‘natural’ human sexuality. This is not to say that our sexual feelings are ‘unnatural’ but that whatever feelings and activities our society interprets as sexual are channeled from birth into socially acceptable forms of expression.” Ruth Hubbard “The society in which we live channels, guides and limits our imagination in sexual as well as other matters. Why some of us give ourselves permission to love people of our own sex whereas others cannot even imagine doing so is an interesting question… People fall in love with individuals, not with sex. Gender need not be a significant factor in our choice, although for some of us it may be.”
13. COMPULSORY HETEROSEXUALITY Refers to the idea that heterosexuality is a mandatory, obligatory, or required sexual orientation. (Compulsory means mandatory, forced, or coercive; Compulsive means an irresistible urge or obsession.) This occurs when a person’s sexuality is generally assumed to be heterosexual in society unless proven otherwise; by both one’s self and those around them.
14. Heterosexism A system of advantages that unfairly privileges heterosexuals. The reinforcement of unearned and unjust heterosexual privileges. The belief in and practice of heterosexual superiority. Social, economic, political, legal, and religious discrimination against people whose sexual orientation/identity is outside of the heteronormal paradigm. The denial of LGBTQI/Queer equal rights, and dismissal of their political and individual concerns.
15. Internalized Homophobia/Heterosexism The internalization of stereotypes, assumptions, and discriminatory ideologies against LGBTIQ/Queer people. Queer people practicing and espousing discriminatory/hateful anti-Queer behavior or language against themselves and other Queer people. Queer people “passing” as heterosexuals in order to avoid losing privilege, legal rights, social status, and acceptance in a variety of areas in their life. Some times an act of survival.
16. Alfred Kinsey Kinsey is regarded as the first person to conduct scientific study of human sexuality. (1933) He developed a scale measuring sexual orientation, now known as the Kinsey Scale which ranges from 0 to 6, where 0 is exclusively heterosexual and 6 is exclusively homosexual; a rating of 7, for asexual, was added later by Kinsey's associates. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ppZwSABxeYE http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0362269/
18. Kinsey states: “Males [and females] do not represent two discrete populations, heterosexual and homosexual. The world is not to be divided into sheep and goats…The living world is a continuum in each and every one of its aspects.” (1948) “It is a characteristic of the human mind that tries to dichotomize in its classification of phenomena….Sexual behavior is either normal or abnormal, socially acceptable or unacceptable, heterosexual or homosexual; and many persons do not want to believe that there are gradations in these matters from one to the other extreme.” (1953)
19. Queer by choice http://www.queerbychoice.com In their efforts to fight homophobia, essentialists tend to start with the assumption that queers will always be in the 10% minority and that heterosexuals will always be in the 90% majority. Essentialists typically try to promote queer rights through arguing that gay people "can't help" being queer and saying that giving queer people equal rights to marry and not be discriminated against will not cause anyone else to become queer.
20. Social Constructionist Social constructionists tend to believe that in a truly liberated society where same-sex desire was not stigmatized, everyone would feel and acknowledge feeling same-sex sexual desire, and exclusive heterosexuality would be the minority and/or non-existent. Thus, they believe that in order to win queer rights we have to also teach “hets” to liberate their own queer potential and see same-sex desire as a natural part of what all humans are capable of experiencing.
21. Radical Feminists (1960s) The male-female role system is the first and original model of oppression. “Marriage is a primary formalization of the persecution of women.” Rejecting marriage as an institution is the primary work of the feminist movement. “Love” is an institution that ‘promotes vulnerability, dependence, possessiveness, susceptibility to pain, and prevents the full development of women’s human potential.” p. 143
22. Shulamit Firestone Feminist movement must end the tyranny of the biological family. Women should not be responsible for reproduction. We need different sexuality—polymorphous sexuality to eliminate sexual taboos. “Men were thinking, writing and creating, because women were pouring their energy into these men; women are not creating culture because they are preoccupied with love.” p. 148
23. bell hooks “…if men [and women] were/[are] not willing to holistically embrace feminist revolution, then they would/[could] not be in an emotional place where they could offer us love. There can be no love without justice” (pg. 65-66). Women’s [and some men’s] obsession with love is not inherent or natural. Rather, it is a socially constructed habit. The concept of “love” gained approval only in the 1900’s when marriage became “more than a bonding whose primary purpose was the sharing of resources and the breeding of future workers” (pg. 76).
24. hooks continued… “No one believes that males [and butch women?] are inherently capable of nurturance, but this sexist stereotype continues to shape cultural perceptions about female identity” (pg. 79). Antipatriarchal thinking assumes that “both women and men [all people] are equally capable of learning how to love” (pg. 98). “…the assumption that women naturally love more and better than [hetero/masculine] men actually keeps us from facing our problems with love and intimacy” (pg. 101-102).
25. What does mutual feminist love look like? “…we find mutual love only when we know how to love. And the best place to start practicing the art of loving is with the self -- that body, mind, heart, and soul that we can most know and change. The one person who will never leave us, whom we will never lose, is ourself. Learning to love our …selves is where our search for love must begin. We begin this journey to love by examining the ideas and benefits we have about the nature of intimacy and true love. Rather than embracing faulty thinking that encourages us to believe that females [femmes] are inherently loving, we make the choice to become loving. Choosing love, we affirm our agency, our commitment to personal growth, our emotional openness.” (hooks, 104)
26. Neza’s guide for coming out… “Every increment of consciousness, every step forward is a travesía, a crossing. I am again an alien in new territory. And again, and again. But if I escape conscious awareness, escape knowing, I wont be moving. Knowledge makes me more aware, it makes me more conscious. Knowing is a painful because after it happens I cant stay in the same place and be comfortable. I am no longer the same person I was before.” (Anzaldúa, pg. 70)
27. Muxerista A muxerista is a person whose identity is rooted in a Chicana/Latina feminist vision for social change committed to ending all forms of oppression, including but not limited to racism, classism, sexism, homophobia, and citizenism. A muxerista is a Chicana/Latina [o] who considers themselves a feminist and activist. The “x” replaces the “j” to denote a connection to indigenous ancestry/language and anti-colonial struggle. It also signifies the multiplicity, complexity, and intersectionality of a Chicana/Latina activist identity. Therefore, muxerista signifies a layering of identities that speaks to the relationship between ethnicity/race, gender, and critical feminist consciousness and engagement. In this sense, a muxerista is simultaneously a Chicana/Latina [o], feminist, and activist—never just one or the other.
28. Queer/Xueer Muxerista While members of Raza Womyn indicated that a muxerista identity is connected to womanhood and gender, it is important to note that some activists who are non-gender conforming, transgender, Queer-gendered, and/or males also can and do identify as muxeristas today. Las Vegas immigrant rights activists have expanded the definition of muxerista beyond the parameters put forward by Raza Womyn to include folks who do not fit into the gender binary, and they use the term to claim a political identity/consciousness.
29. An Anzalduista is someone whose every fiber of their being is in the borderlands, who possesses la facultad and faces her/his shadow beast at every turn and who welcome travesías, especially the Queers living in hetero world, the dark-skinned living in a racist world, the muxerliving in patriarchy, and the poor living under capitalism.
30. “There is a rebel in me—the Shadow-Beast. It is a part of me that refuses to take orders from outside authorities. It refuses to take orders from my conscious will, it threatens the sovereignty of my rulership. It is that part of me that hate constraints of any kind, even those self-imposed. At the least hint of limitations on my time or space by others, it kicks out with both feet. Bolts” (Anzaldúa, 1999, 38). A muxerista is a resistor and questions all authority and social constructs, even those self and community-imposed. Specifically, gender and sexuality roles are vehemently questioned and rejected, even when they are painful travesías [crossings].
32. Citizenism A system of advantages that unfairly privileges US citizens. The reinforcement of unearned and unjust citizen privileges. The belief in and practice of citizen superiority. Social, economic, political, and legal discrimination against undocumented immigrants. The denial of immigrant equal and human rights, and dismissal of their political and individual concerns. US citizen supremacy that allows for the exploitation and dehumanization of undocumented immigrants. The active criminalization of marginalized laborers living in the US for the purpose of economic survival.
