Introduction (01)
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With the legalization of gay marriage, the introduction of sexual orientation and gender identity as protected classes against discrimination, and a greater acceptance of LGBT identities, societal views on homosexuality have inverted. In 1977, under half of Americans believed that homosexual relationships should be legal; in 2017, that percentage has increased by ~67% (Gay and Lesbian Rights). For some, it seems as if the “fight” for equality is over.
However, the LGBT community and mainstream gay rights movement has always had undercurrents of racism, classism, and sexism (EP; Faye; Flores). Though the prototypical LGBT person tends to be a middle-class White male, the movement has historically been furthered by marginalized groups: people of color, lower socioeconomic status (SES), and trans people (Flores).
One commonly overlooked group in society and in the mainstream LGBT community is the Asian American population, viewed commonly through a lens of racism such as the model minority, a concept invented in 1966 used to propagate the idea that Asian Americans overcame historic discrimination and racism through hard work and other “innately” Asian traits (Cheryan & Bodenhausen 173) while failing to take into consideration the historical context of Asian immigration and the cultural context of anti-Asian racism in 20th century America. Such racism extends similarly to queer Asian Americans, whose experiences and stories are devalued by Western narratives of sexuality. Much of the focus on anti-Asian racism in popular news outlets centers around gay Asian men and dating, with Grindr being the focal point (Bollinger; Jones; Ly), but little dialogue is found in mainstream spaces about the erasure of queer Asian American lives and experiences as a whole. This blog aims to counteract that and explore one specific aspect of queer Asian American life that holds particular importance: family acceptance.
Works Cited
Bollinger, Alex. “White Guy Surprised by Anti-Asian Racism on Grindr.” LGBTQ Nation, LGBTQ Nation, 16 Sept. 2017, www.lgbtqnation.com/2017/09/white-guy-surprised-anti-asian-racism-grindr/.
Cheryan, S, and G V Bodenhausen. “Model Minority.” Routledge Companion to Race & Ethnicity , Routledge, 2011, pp. 173–176.
EP. “Web Event 2: Classism and the Queer Community.” Serendip Studio, Serendip, 7 Oct. 2013, serendip.brynmawr.edu/exchange/critical-feminist-studies-2013/ep/web-event-2-classism-and-queer-community.
Faye, Sean. “The Gay Men Who Hate Women.” Broadly, Vice Media LLC, 11 Nov. 2015, broadly.vice.com/en_us/article/jpyz8k/the-gay-men-who-hate-women.
Flores, Andrew R. “Yes, There’s Racism in the LGBT Community. But There’s More Outside It.” The Washington Post, WP Company, 7 July 2017, www.washingtonpost.com/news/monkey-cage/wp/2017/07/07/yes-there-is-racism-in-the-lgbtq-community-but-not-as-much-as-outside-it/?utm_term=.b5a9b8fe6abb.
“Gay and Lesbian Rights.” Gallup.com, Gallup, Inc., news.gallup.com/poll/1651/gay-lesbian-rights.aspx.
Jones, Owen. “No Asians, No Blacks. Why Do Gay People Tolerate Such Blatant Racism?” The Guardian, Guardian News and Media, 24 Nov. 2016, www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2016/nov/24/no-asians-no-blacks-gay-people-racism.
Ly, David. “How Online Racism Towards Gay Asian Men Affects IRL Dating.” Vice, Vice Media LLC, 20 Apr. 2017, www.vice.com/en_au/article/mgy7wx/how-online-racism-towards-gay-asian-men-effects-irl-dating.
The intro to an awesome blog on Asian American LGBTQs and family acceptance.



















