It makes me happy
This #menswear thing I do is mostly about distracting myself from the vicissitudes of politics and the massive injustices that exist in the world. My day-to-day life is spent working on analysis of one small, but important part of the systems that benefit from and maintain these injustices. It’s nice to have a get-away.
However, I get very happy when the people I am following offer explicitly political posts highlighting injustices or the small victories against those injustices. Most are of the feminist and queer-positive variety. Increasingly, I’m also seeing trans-positive posts.
I grew up as a homophobe. I couldn’t really not, living in a very homophobic community. The only ‘trans’ I knew about were labelled transvestites and considered sexual deviants. I have spent years confronting this internalized homophobia and cis-supremacy. As a father, I am hopeful that my girls can grow up with a default position that queer and trans people are deserving of social equality and justice. Of course, that doesn’t mean these injustices will end any time soon. There are always important struggles to be fought. But, the fewer people who need to battle themselves, the better.
So, a small thank you to all who care about these things and are willing to call attention to them in the Tumblr #menswear world.
