DivineDemento

Anyone who’s read any of my previous blog posts will, hopefully, not be surprised to find out that I’m rather invested in queer culture. So much so, that I started a blog dedicated to queer analysis of films, books, music, celebrities…any way I can put a defiantly queer spin on any given topic, I get excited. It is a way I’ve found I can express my deep, emphatic love and pride for my community. But sometimes, being an outspoken queer activist (if I may be so bold to give myself that title – God knows there are many who are more deserving) means questioning and criticising things that happen within your own community. Our community is not perfect, and often things we hold sacred need to be challenged when they’re not up to task. For a while now, RuPaul’s Drag Race has been such a cultural phenomenon. The show has done wonders for introducing positive representation of queer and gender non-conforming people into the media landscape. It was perhaps the first show to portray drag pe...

Strong, powerful and slightly ridiculous women have a long-established role in queer culture, especially for gay men. These women are a mirror, reflecting our struggles and ambitions when positive representation was out of the question. So, if a gay icon is a woman who is resilient, glamorous, exaggerated and sexually empowered, it is time to induct Nigella Lawson into the pantheon. There has been something of a trend in recent years of awarding ‘Gay Icon’ status to questionable recipients. Now, I’m certainly not going to suggest that this is the most pressing issue facing our queer community at this current time, but it is certainly indicative of certain malaise surrounding gay culture as it becomes engulfed in mainstream (read straight) society and media. To award individuals like Taylor Swift gay icon status is to show an ignorance of what constitutes a gay icon. For a gay icon, and a star who champions gay people, can be mutually exclusive. Something more is required to bec...