You don’t need me to tell you that these are dark times, especially for queer people.
Well, maybe if you’re a straight, white cis person with your attentions focused solely on yourself, you do, in which case let me tell you: these are dark times for queer people!
Here in the United States, our government has been on a tirade against our kind for a long time. Oh sure, we achieved a lot in the last nearly 56 years since the Stonewall riots brought the plight of our folk into the public light. In many states, we can no longer be fired or denied housing for who we are (though in several we still can), and we won the federal right to legally marry in 2015 (though many Republican-led states are fighting against that at this very moment). There are many, many fights that have not yet been won, though I have found that the majority of people who aren’t directly affected by these issues tend to not even know that they exist. The fight for queer equality is a real one and now more than ever we need to channel our inner warriors and fight, fight, fight.
But what does that mean, exactly? Am I advocating for rioting in the streets? Maybe. While we love to party, often inebriated and nearly naked every June for Pride, sometimes it seems we collectively forget that what we are commemorating is an actual riot. On June 28, 1969, the Stonewall Inn, an establishment that catered to queer folk and people of color, was raided by police. Police raids of queer spaces were a common occurrence, as in those days homosexuality was illegal, and these spaces provided easy targets for police who liked to terrorize, humiliate, and abuse the marginalized. (The more things change, the more they stay the same.)
But this time was different. Instead of passively accepting arrest and beatings, patrons fought back. It is said that Marsha P. Johnson, a black trans woman, and Sylvia Rivera, a Latinx trans woman, were the ones who threw the first brick. (Some reports say it wasn’t either of them, but nonetheless they became the symbol of the resistance.) It’s worth noting that most people who were there that night were black and brown queer folk.
But it wasn’t just righteous anger and violence that fueled the resistance. There was a healthy dose of subversive humor, as well. As the Tactical Patrol Force arrived and formed a line to clear the streets, queer protestors responded by forming a kick line, and sang:
“We are the Stonewall girls
We wear our hair in curls
We don’t wear underwear
We show our pubic hair.”
In response, the police attacked them with nightsticks and batons, scattering the protesters who ran for their lives.
But this was not the end of the protest. As more and more people joined the fight, the police were quickly outnumbered. The tide had begun to turn.
The riots lasted for six days. As more and more people learned of the violence, celebrities and regular people began to call out the obvious police brutality. Organizations began to form. Other protests were organized. No longer would we be content hiding in the shadows, fearing police raids of our sacred spaces. We banded together. We rose up. And through righteous subversion we proudly refused to fit into an oppressive system that would have gladly seen us dead.
As we find ourselves in a politically dangerous climate, I think it’s beyond time that we revisit our activist roots. Besides the attacks (both political and physical) on queer folk in general, our trans siblings are being viciously targeted, not just here at home, but abroad as well.
The UK just legally defined gender according to biological sex assigned at birth, effectively stating that trans women and trans men are not their actual gender, a move that not only ignores their lived experiences, but dehumanizes them as well. As we know, moves like this only serve to promote discrimination and violence, both of which have been steadily on the rise in our queer communities.
But not all activism is in the form of holding signs and civil disobedience. We must remember the tactics of our forebears who reveled in silly antics and in-your-face fabulousness. It is time, I think for a divine dose of subversion, and in the Pagan/Witchy world, we would be wise to draw upon our queer ancestors for help.
Recently, I had the opportunity to visit the grave of one such ancestor. While in Baltimore for the Sacred Space conference, a friend and initiate of mine planned a short trip to visit a local graveyard, one that was home to one of the most powerful figures in pop-culture queer subversion: that drag queen actor known to the world as Divine (Harris Glenn Milstead, Oct. 19, 1945 – March 7, 1988).
“I only ask you for what is rightfully mine, what the good lord has bestowed on me: being divine!”
— Divine in John Waters’ Mondo Trasho, 1969
As is custom, the four of us brought offerings, including some Pearl “Fuchsia Fusion” lipstick (bought for cheap at the local CVS), which we generously applied so that we could kiss the tombstone to leave our mark. Then we prayed to Divine that we be blessed with their spirit of divine subversion. The whole affair took no more than twenty minutes, but it was both satisfying and silly as all hell.
(L-R: David Salisbury, Matthew Venus, John Boyce, and Storm Faerywolf, making offerings at the grave of Divine.)
“I will be *queen* one day and my coronation will be celebrated *all* over the world. Do not forget: I am Divine!”
—Divine as Babs Johnson from Pink Flamingos, 1972
I think we need this presence in our lives right now. We need to be queer-as-f**k in the face of overwhelming oppression. Those of us who feel called to be visible can stand as lights for those trapped in the darkness of their closets. We will meet fear with pride, and a healthy dose of fabulous silliness. Because silly is a superpower. It shocks the oppressive mind and renders them powerless. We will not conform just to make the straight-folk comfortable. The time of assimilation is so last century. In the face of conformist-gray fascism we must shine with a glitter rainbow light.
We must get louder, gayer, blacker, browner, transer, anything that the powers-that-be revile and fear. We must also be kinder, more compassionate, and yes, even more angry. There are many ways to be a warrior. Living fabulously queer is the resistance we need right now.
Photo credit: Storm Faerywolf
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A Prayer for Divine Subversion
Thou queen of filth. Thou art Divine!
You who were the filthiest person alive!
Thy wretched beauty that shocked the gray, boring masses
Lives on in film and in our hearts.
We ask for your blessing of divine subversion;
Grant us the courage to be our most rebellious selves,
In the face of danger, let us laugh and sing
In the face of boredom let us be garish!
Let our voices be raised in song, off key
Discordant notes of queer freedom.
Divine, Divine, Divine,
Let thy power be mine, mine, mine!
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