i think people would be more willing to listen to the “including x identity in the lgbt acronym isnt useful as it fits under y other identity already there” argument if it wasnt worded as “your identity is Wrong and you’re actually y and not x” but something more to the extent of “society doesnt makes a distinction between x and y and since y is recognized by that same label, theres no systematic oppression for being x, what oppression you do face is tied to you being y/being percieved as y and thus including x when y is already there doesnt bring anything new and could actually drive people off”.
i wont add my actual thoughts on that argument and i know i may be strawmaning with that first wording but its ultimately how its percieved and so the answer youll get will be an answer to the “youre invalid” argument and not what you actually said. wording is pretty important when youre exchanging conflicting opinions & political stances (lgbt+ issues are political). Sadly pretty much anyone can see your exchanges on social media and so some wording that are understood as having more meaning & thought behind them by both people will be read by someone who lacks that context behind it and misinterpret it. im not suggesting that we all stop joking but to keep in mind how what youre posting publicly could be misinterpreted and how what youre reading couldve been badly worded, especially on social media

yelyzavetaart:

in response to the crisis going on in chechnya right now, i wanted to underline how important it is to understand the complexity of russian homophobia, which has proven to be distinct from many western strains of homophobia due to historical circumstances. historically, same-sex attraction has been seen as non-russian due to its connection to bourgeois decadence of the west (which opposed proletarian values), as well as long-term invisibility of the LGBT+ community under stalin and its sudden reemergence in the 90s (when the soviet union collapsed) which shapes much of contemporary homophobia. there are also other factors, such as promotion of hypermasculinity within the soviet union after WWII and the generally sexphobic culture prevalent under the regime. while biological arguments (”it’s unnatural”) and religion have also played a role in modern russian homophobia, it is the association of LGBT+ existence with the west that has causes the most retaliation against LGBT+ activism. (we can see this most evidently with sochi olympics and now with the chechnya crisis; external activist efforts are rejected because ‘the west is trying to meddle with russian politics/values’ and internal efforts are rejected because ‘they’re brainwashed by the west’)

since i just finished my massive research paper on russian lgbt+ history, here are a few sources that i would highly recommend for learning more about how russia came to be so homophobic:

DAN HEALEY (aka the champion of russian LGBT+ history): 

• Book: Homosexual Desire in Revolutionary Russia: The Regulation of Sexual and Gender Dissent - excellent and meticulously detailed overview of the complexities of russian LGBT+ lives at the beginning of the 20th century; discusses both progressiveness of lenin’s regime and the violent repression and erasure of LGBT+ identity under stalin, as well as so much more
  
• Journal: HOMOSEXUAL EXISTENCE AND EXISTING SOCIALISM: New Light on the Repression of Male Homosexuality in Stalin’s Russia; a more brief overview than the book; may be more easily accessible. strongly recommend if you’re interested in history and want a starting point for learning about early soviet politics and how they affected LGBT+ lives
  

BRIAN BAER:

• Book: Other Russias: Homosexuality and the Crisis of Post-Soviet Identity; excellent examination in the role that invisibility of the LGBT+ community (due to stalin’s repression and sudden reappearance in the 80s and 90s after gorbachev’s reforms) has played in making russians believe that same-sex attraction is a product of western infiltration into russian society. offers excellent criticisms of discourse surrounding russian LGBT+ issues by western scholars.
  

DAVID TULLER:

• Book: Cracks in the Iron Closet: Travels in Gay and Lesbian Russia; offers a more accessible insight into russian LGBT+ society through recounting the author’s travels. over all a good book, but is not as far reaching or deeply analytical as some of the other sources. there’s a preview on google books, so you can easily skim through it.
  

MULTIPLE AUTHORS:

• Book: Out of the Blue: Russia’s Hidden Gay Literature; An Anthology (ed. Kevin Moss); a wonderful read revealing numerous hidden gay/LGBT+ figures throughout russian literary scene. you’ll be surprised to find how many of the famous russian authors and poets were not straight.
  
• Book: Gender in Russian History and Culture (ed. Edmondson); features a chapter by my man Healey discussing lesbianism and the medical/endocrinological discoveries of the 1910s-1920s that shaped russian discourse on homosexuality later on, as well as many interesting discussions about womanhood in russian and early soviet society.
  

if you went to discuss anything with me or have any questions about russian LGBT+ history, homophobia, or things about my personal experience as a same-gender attracted russian & ukrainian woman, my inbox/IM is available (just keep in mind that this is a highly sensitive subject for me and there may be some things i’m not comfortable disclosing)

jad3w1ngs:

I’m sick of seeing apparently ‘LGBT inclusive’ posts that completely disregard my sexuality. I want to know who out there believes that I and others like me exist and have a valid sexuality. 

thebestpersonherelovesbucky:

aintnobodygottime4datshit:

ishipitlikeups:

finnandjakegotdacake:

ishipitlikeups:

64bitwar:

Declaring yourself asexual is actually a form of self-diagnosis.

You have no business diagnosing yourself. You are not qualified to evaluate your own biology or psychology. It’s literally equivalent to just deciding you’re bipolar. It’s not a personal identity decision.

You have no business diagnosing yourself.

Are you… Are you implying that gay people cAN’T IDENTIFY AS GAY THEY HAVE TO BE DIAGNOSED HOLY CRAP THIS IS COMEDY GOLD THERE’S NO WAY YOU AREN’T A TROLL.

“Tim, your results came back. You’re gay.”

“Thanks, Doc. There’s absolutely no way I could have possibly known that on my own without your official diagnosis.”

Fucking amazing

no, this is serious. I had to go through a series of tests before I could be diagnosed as bi//pan. I even have a laminated card and everything.