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Image Description: Two men kissing at the Baltimore Pride Parade block party 2017 TW: Body Image, Eating Disorders From an outside perspective, the idea of the ‘twink’ can be something of a joke. It helps non-LGBTQ+ people to neatly categorise queer people into more easily understandable stereotypes, often with the aim of ridicule. In my […]
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CW: Biphobia Image description: a bisexual pride flag DISCLAIMER: In this piece, I am only speaking to the experiences of myself and those of many other bisexuals I know. Bisexuality is such a broad range of sexuality and experiences that it would be impossible for anyone to speak on behalf of the whole community. Any […]
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Image description: a picture of Jenny and a cat at home CW: transphobia The Oxford Student spoke to Jenny Elizabeth Scoones, a third year English student at Mansfield and pop singer/songwriter about her upcoming single, trans rights in the UK and creating art in a pandemic. Your new single, Always Known, comes out on March […]
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Image Description: A sign in the trans flag colours that reads: ‘Trans misogyny is still misogyny’ CW: transphobia Beyond their obvious implicit transphobia, there is an odd narrative being spun by UK-based Trans Exclusionary Radical Feminists (TERFs, a term describing those who actively and deliberately attempt to exclude trans people, and especially trans women, from […]
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Image Description: (Left) Rita Mae Brown, (Right) Cover of Rubyfruit Jungle There are always lots of recommendations floating around of what to read, watch, and listen to in LGBT history month. However, finding older books and films that clearly foreground queer characters can prove difficult: the lengthy backlog of historical classics that emphasise heterosexual relationships […]
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Image Description: Two men laying down on their side surrounded by technology *MSM stands for men who have sex with men For MSM, the internet can be both the best and worst place. On one hand, it offers an anonymous place where one can express their sexuality, learn more, and meet others whether they are […]
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Image Description: Female presenting person waving pride flag on a truck As with many facets of the LGBTQ+ community, our flags are not without controversy. As we progress through another LGBTQ+ history month, it is important to look back on these flags and remember where they come from and what they mean. Obviously, there are […]
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Image Description: LGBTQ+ victory parade 2018 in Calcutta, India, a sign reads: “Queers for Democracy not for Emergency” When I recently attended the hustings for the OULGBT society, there was a lot of talk about how marginalised students (people of colour and trans students) within the community felt as though they didn’t belong in the […]
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Image description: Budapest LGBTQ+ Pride 2015 “Wonderland Is For Everyone,” says the title of an inclusive fairytale featuring characters from queer and ethnic minority backgrounds. “Not for us,” is apparently the answer of the Hungarian government. The publishers, the Labrisz Lesbian Association, must now indicate through a disclaimer on this and future LGBTQ+ inclusive books […]
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Image description: an eye with a rainbow seen reflected in it I don’t like Lincolnshire. That’s my home, unfortunately. It’s a rural, heavily conservative, bigoted place. To give you an idea: my constituency has always voted Tory by a large margin for almost a hundred years. The last non-Tory MP was a Liberal in 1923 […]
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Image Description: Alan Light and Ellen DeGeneres at the 1994 Emmy Awards I recently had the misfortune to read a fairly obnoxious op-ed entitled ‘Ellen doesn’t have to be nice to you. She’s not your mom.’ (sic) The publication that had put out this particular piece was one of those vapid LGBTQ+ ‘news’ sites whose […]
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As the dust of the US presidential election settles and the clearing of the debris begins, it’s time we pay attention to the hundreds of other celebrations awaiting their turn. For Biden and Trump were far from the only candidates on the ballot. Following what has otherwise been a bleak and dark year, a record number of LGBTQ+ […]
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Image Description: A white, pink and grey trainer on a purple arm Something I’ve been thinking a lot about lately is the way I look. Not in a bad way, either – I don’t mind my appearance and can occasionally appreciate it. No, I’ve more been thinking about the way my self-image has changed now […]
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Image Description: Protestor in knitted hat at the 2018 Women’s March Cw: Transphobia All too often I hear the words ‘I support equality between men and women but I’m not a feminist’. Even the feminist icon, Simone de Beauvoir, repeatedly refused to align herself with the feminist movement until later in her career in 1972. […]
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Image Description: Silhouette of an unidentified person standing on a hill during a starry night looking up at the sky. Faith wasn’t ever something I thought I’d develop and it certainly wasn’t something I thought would be reconcilable with my LGBTQ+ identity. Since starting at Oxford, the process of integrating these aspects of my sense […]
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Image Description: Removal of a statue of the Shah in Tehran University during the revolution in 1978 Recent successes for the #RhodesMustFall movement has left many Oxford students with a sense of frustration. Of course, it’s good to see progress finally being made on this issue. What’s disappointing is the length of time it’s taken […]
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CW: Transphobia, TERFs Let’s be clear from the start. J. K. Rowling is transphobic. We can see this in the opinions that she has shared and in those she has publicly endorsed. But like so many TERFs, her transphobia often manifests in a form more insidious than blatant. I’d go as far as to say […]
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Like many, I find it easy to promote the existence of spaces exclusively for the LGBTQ+ community, but difficult to imagine the practice. We are a community in advocacy of inclusivity; harbouring those who face rejection for who they are and providing the familial support that so many need. How can this possibly be married […]
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The drag queen Trixie Mattel, otherwise known as Brian Firkus, is the winner of Drag Race All Stars Season 3, but also a confessed, obsessive Barbie doll collector. Firkus’s love for Barbie started when he was young. As a gay boy from Milwaulkee, he wasn’t allowed “girl toys,” but was fascinated by the tanned, blonde, […]
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