In today’s society, people are coming out and identifying themselves more into the LGBTQ community rather than hiding their true identities. On social media such as Instagram, Tik Tok, and various shows, creators have created characters that encompass the LGBTQ community and shed light on their community. In the show, The Fosters, there is a lot of LGBTQ representation from adults to children finding their identities. In the show, the parents, Stef Foster and Lena Adams are a lesbian couple that adopts 4 children and having 1 biological son (due to a previous marriage). Stef and Lena were loving and caring parents that it doesn’t matter whether they are the same sex, they care for each other and support their children, proving that no matter your preferences, you can have an amazing family and support system. In addition to Stef and Lena, their adopted son Jude comes out as gay, after exploring his youth with both females and males. Having a young male role model gives comfort and acceptance to others that are exploring who they are and what they want. In the end, the term queer can be altered and defined differently depending on your perspective; however, everyone in the LGBTQ community is human and has the same right to happiness as everyone else in the world.
Abby Bangs-Queer
I believe that music, used as an extension of identity, can be used as a lens for the keyword “queer.” Queer production can be defined as producing media that includes those of LGBTQ+, whereas the reading said itself, LGBTQ+ media is becoming more mainstream as “queer” is becoming widely accepted and normalized. Being “queer” is an extension of an individual’s identity because it related to their perspective, perceptions, past, present, future, etc. Specifically, music is a means of performing identity, which in this case is “queer.” This type of music is identifiable within the LGBTQ+ community because it is relatable, and creates a larger and more defined community between those who listen to LGBTQ+ artists. However, while this is a performance of identity, it can additionally be a performance of a false identity. Also known as “queer-baiting,” artists act “queer,” in order to seem more inclusive or gain a larger audience (and more reasons.) Now, the question becomes “how can someone act “queer”?” These artists aren’t necessarily acting “queer,” however they are identifying themselves in mainly LGBTQ+ community and related artifacts; such that they do not directly identify as queer, however they use commonly used LGBTQ+ language, resemble to ‘kiss’ (+ other interactions) those of the same (+ other) genders. The problem is that this is rather for publicity (in most cases,) and these artists do not actually identify as queer; they are not sincere. An additional problem is that queer baiting takes away from legitimate queer artists who are unknown and genuinely represent their community. In conclusion, queer is an extension of identity, however this identity can be exploited and can take away from those who truly identify as queer; which can invalidate and suppress those who identify with it.
Queer- Lana Vjestica
Queer is a term that many people in the LGBTQ community identity as. It can have different meanings for each person. The term “queer” used to actually be a way for straight people to degrade people in the LGBTQ community. However, people within the community were able to reclaim that word. Queerness in media is portrayed in a variety of ways. Many TV shows and movies nowadays try to have at least one form of queer representation. They try to shed light on the fact that it’s okay to be bi, gay, lesbian, etc. while also trying to show the struggles of being in the LGBTQ community. An example of this would be Mickey from the show Shameless. In the show, he is dating a boy named Ian & one day Mickey’s father walks in on them. Mickey’s dad was very against it so he beat him and made him marry a woman. As the show goes on, Mickey goes back to Ian and they get married. The entire episode where Ian & Mickey get married, Mickey’s dad is trying to stop them. This is just one story as how queer people are not easily accepted even by their own family members.
Week 4: September 14 & 16
What’s Due Next?
Tuesday (today)
- Reading: Queer
Thursday: Response post to “Queer” keyword
Next:
- Sunday, September 19: Watch I Am Not Your Negro, prepare to discuss through lenses on September 21:
- Identity
- New Media
- Feminism
- Gender
- Queer
- Race
- Intersectionality
- Tuesday, September 21: Reply comments to Queer posts
- Wednesday, September 22: Attend Çudamani performance; look for tickets by email this week from the Modlin Center
- Field Experience Report is due October 3
- Readings for next week: Race and Intersectionality
What’s Coming Up?
- Look at sample ArcGIS digital stories for inspiration. Start on the ArcGIS StoryMaps stories page
- Start thinking about your final project: What keyword might you like to illustrate as an ArcGIS StoryMap?
Tuesday, September 14
- Feedback on posts to date
- Be as specific as you can in your examples; remember the difference between a claim and supporting evidence
- “TikTok influencers help shape fashion choices among young people” is a claim
- “This specific TikTok influencer recommended a particular product, and it sold out at Amazon within 20 minutes on this date” is supporting evidence to illustrate the claim.
- Seek to make a claim and provide supporting evidence
- Be sure to add the proper category to posts, and remember to clear the “Uncategorized” category
- Be as specific as you can in your examples; remember the difference between a claim and supporting evidence
- Media watching: What are you watching/viewing/listening to/engaging with?
- Have any of the ideas we’ve encountered so far changed anything about the way you consume or create media?
Keyword: Queer
Popplet Exercise
We’ll use Padlet, a mind-mapping app, to map overarching responses to questions about queer media production and consumption. Visit https://padlet.com/dhocutt1/2bbgf65vj47n6zhq to start contributing
- Start responding to each question by double clicking on the board and adding your thoughts.
- Feel free to include links and images or videos and to add color to your responses.
- Connect ideas that seem connect.
- Add comments to others’ pads.
- After 10-15 minutes, we’ll regroup and talk about responses, then address some of the following discussion questions.
Here’s what we did. I managed to lose all of the connections you made (I was trying to neaten the display, and that didn’t work out very well), but this lists all of your contributions to the prompts. These were the prompts:
- What does it mean to produce queer media? What are some examples?
- What does it mean to consume media queerly? What are some examples of queer consumption?
Discussion Questions
- How does the text describe queer as a “category”?
- What’s the role of demographics in this description?
- How does the text describe queer as a “historical index”?
- What’s the role of the LGBTQ civil rights movement in this description?
- How does the text describe queer as a “set of practices and methods for interpreting media”?
- What does the “QueerOS” mean, and how does it contribute to this description?
- How does the figure of the “latchkey kid” fit into contemporary perspectives on queer media and interpretation?
- To what extent is queer a producer’s approach? A consumer’s perspective?
- What are some queer media productions? What makes them queer?
- What are some non-queer media productions that could be queered?
- What might queering something established or institutional mean?
- What does the text mean by “our [queer viewers] entry points to media are often askew”?
- What does the text say that “to watch and listen queerly” mean?
- What is the relationship of heteronormativity to a queer approach?
Thursday, September 16
Screenshot of the Queering the Map project
Application of queer to a multimedia project: Queering the Map
Individually
- Visit queeringthemap.com
- Orient yourself to the map and its function by scrolling around and selecting some of the pins
- Use the map to find 2-3 locations with which you’re familiar. If there are any pins in the general vicinity, select several and read them. What do you learn about these locations?
- Navigate to unfamiliar locations you’d consider unusual to drop a pin. Read nearby pins. What do you learn about these unfamiliar locations?
As a Class
- What’s queer about this project? Consider the question from perspectives of production and consumption.
- What’s your reaction to this project?
- Are there aspects of this project that can’t be queered? If so, what are they? Either way, why or why not?
- Watch the first 9 minutes of the video below, which features the designer of Queering the Map.
- What insights do you gain from hearing the designer talk about the project?
- Does this change the way you think about the project? Why or why not?
Introduction- Thomas Takele
Greetings! My name is Thomas Takele. I am from Silver Spring, Maryland. I came to the University of Richmond because I had heard it had a beautiful campus and generous with financial aid (which I later found out was the truth). I went to Wheaton High School, where I played basketball, was the
secretary for the East African Student Association and volunteered to help in many other events within the school.If you wanted to find me anytime while I was in high school your best guess was on a basketball court. That is where most of my fun times were spent from the age of 9 to the age of 18. I had to take a break from basketball in the summer of 2021 because I had gone through a meniscus tear which I had thought was minor. It was actually two small tears that were so close together that they looked like one big one. I had got surgery and needed to find hobbies that I could do to live life without basketball. 6 weeks after the surgery I was able to walk again and I began hanging out with my friends again and having fun moments. T
his is when I had fell in love with taking pictures and capturing fun moments in life. This became my new hobby and what I could do while my leg was still healing from surgery. This gives you a glimpse of where I am in my current state.
Identity- Alvin Mugarura
Identity can be described as the distinguishing character of an individual. This is shaped by different aspects as one goes through life with media being one of the most influential aspects in the 21st century through which identity is either performed or formed. Social media is one of the biggest forms of identity expressions and can be considered as a platform of free expression. The concept of hybridity in relation to performance of identity is very much related to social media due to the fact that the internet keeps data forever which causes its users to filter what kind of information they post for the world to see. A famous example is the trend in which people have adopted the “finsta” for only close friends and family where they post “the real versions of themselves ” and a public Instagram page with a “personality that resonates with the societal social media concepts.” this example shows a direct relationship between media and identity performance. Another influence media has on identity today can be viewed from the lens of creator-fan relationship. An example is the BTS fan army which has had the fans involved in specific fashion genres as they try to replicate their celebrity idols.
Alvin Mugarura on Feminism
The text clearly states that the film industry has a lot of stereotypical roles for the women and the men. There is a visual pleasure aspect when portraying cinema through the male gaze. This is when the media is assumed to be viewed in the eyes of a heterosexual man. A good example of the male gaze in recent cinema is the portrayal of Harley Quinn in the movie Sucuide squad. Her role, like many other supporting female characters in major movies does not really add to the plot but is meant to be visually pleasing or captivative through her the male gaze. This is quite diminishing for the female characters who would wish to be appreciated by their acting campaign rather than looks. The male gaze can also be traced in the other industries for example the news anchoring where claims about female dress code have been reported. The female news anchors are pressured to wear a certain type of clothing and specific type of make up unlike their male counterparts. This is absurd because it is all about the individual qualities or value in this case news being broadcasted not how captivating the news anchor is. Feminism is on the rise and acts like the male gaze are constantly being fought to create equality in the world and discard all sorts of stereotypes be it male or female.
Feminism
Feminism is a movement that has been hugely important in advancing our society to point now where we are closer to equality than ever before. In its essence, feminism is simply the fight for women’s equality. However, feminism can arm us with tools needed to help make the world more equitable. Learning about feminism and its values allows us to adopt a more critical lens while interacting with others in day to day life and when viewing media. Feminist scholars have studied how movies have increasingly shown women in a sexual manner and how higher ratings unfortunately seem to reflect this trend. This school of thinking has also helped to identify how media has reinforced stereotypical gender roles, which we are now easily able to identify and denounce today. Through feminism, black, female activists such as Jaqueline Bobo have been able to find a voice and discuss how black women in particular have been stereotyped and taken advantage of in media. Modern feminism has created a movement for media that has women in significant, leading roles which is certainly a change that is necessary to truly move toward equality.
Feminism Keyword Response – Grace
One thing that struck me the most from this keyword reading was the concept of the male gaze particularly in the medium of film. The male gaze specifically in movies is something that I have done some research on. I will include links below to the videos I reference. The male gaze is defined as existing when a film forces the audience to see watch the film through the eyes of a heterosexual man. While the male gaze is more well known and better defined, such as through it’s objectification of women, it begs the question of if a female gaze can exist. And if so what are its defining features? One important factor in the “gaze” of a film seems to be the people involved in the film’s production. As the text said having a male director, cameraman and co stars helps to aid this creation of the male gaze. Therefore, I think some examples of the female gaze would be movies made for and by women. For example Greta Gerwig’s adaptation of Little Women (2019) or Emerald Fennell’s film Promising Young Women (2020). In an interview about the film Emerald Fennell discussed wanting to make a female revenge thriller that actually reflected how a real woman would go about getting revenge. This I think points to her film being of the female gaze, although that term is still ill-defined. Another interesting way to view the difference between the male and female gazes is by looking at the difference between Sucide Squad and Birds of Prey which both feature the character Harley Quinn, but are affected by the male gaze much differently.
Unpacking the Male Gaze: Birds of Prey vs. Suicide Squad
Harley Quinn’s Costume in Birds of Prey
Feminism: Marielle Dibbini
It is clear that in the past the media’s portrayal of men has been extremely different compared to the portrayal of women. Men have been portrayed in their leading roles as strong and heroic figures. On the contrary, women in Hollywood cinema were first only used as sexual objects. This drastic difference has promoted sexist representations of women as well as discrimination against females. Men’s domination over women continued throughout early films. Media has repeatedly shown the stereotype of specific gender roles relating to family dynamics. Women played roles as purely mother figures who depended on their husband, the strong leader of the household. Even in advertisements, women continued to be seen in a particular way. “One study found that 75 percent of all ads using females were products found in the kitchen or bathroom (Dominick and Rauch 1972),” (Douglas 68). All females in media were casted down to their gender stereotypes, causing a major divide between male and female. The media has been able to represent women as strong figures and role models in more recent years, however, this long-lasting inequality problem cannot change overnight. Society must continue to fight for feminism.