LGBTQ+ Transformers fan thread

[PrimalxConvoy]

I just want to say I genuinely appreciate your response and your kind words. I felt a bit odd even saying anything, because it's so easy to have what you're trying to get across be misconstrued, and I'm thankful to you for clarifying a bit about your reasoning. It helps to keep things understandable and kind, and really that goes a long way with, at the least, me. Thank you very much.

Spoiler

You're most welcome. I must not wallow in self-gratitude or (no pun intended) pride, as I'm aware some of my views are still not relevant/considered hostile to some LGBT+ people (and perhaps, quite rightly so). However, thank you for your understanding.

Again, my response above are hidden behind spoilers for similar reasons.

 

[PrimalxConvoy]

Mina, Konichiwa!

Here are some recent(ish) Japan-related LGBQT+ articles.

The first is a short bioptic about a Japanese-British singer (and film actress, as she was in "John Wick"). It mentions her trauma of being a teen in abusive relationships and also in her identify as Japanese/British in the UK.

Her music might also be interesting, and there's a link to one of her videos in the article.

"...In her final year she made a circle of friends – “a bunch of queers at Queens’ College” – who helped her realise that she wasn’t straight. She never had a classic coming-out moment, she says; more a steady process of discovery aided by the group. “It was like: now that you say that, I did this and this. It was like: maybe you’re bi? And I was like: maybe I’m bi? That kind of vibe,” she says. Today, she identifies as pansexual.

Before people come up to you they look at you. I’m like: oh hug, what do they want? What’s on my face?

That friendship group was also part of a drag scene, which helped shape Sawayama’s musical modus operandi. “I really think that fun and humour is one of the best ways to get over something, once you’ve done the emotional work,” she says. “Drag is turning trauma into humour and entertainment and that’s what I’m trying to do..."

(Source: - https://www.theguardian.com/music/2...yama-british-japanese-pop-star-asian-identity )

Next up is some sad news, followed by some good news, regarding the national government still not recognising same-sex marriages, but that Nintendo of Japan has!

(Spoiler'd as it might be upsetting)

Spoiler

We are so far behind’: Japan laments lack of progress on same-sex marriage

- https://www.theguardian.com/world/2...laments-lack-of-progress-on-same-sex-marriage

Japanese trans woman denied status as parent of own child

Tokyo high court rules that child born after woman’s legal gender change should not be recognised as her daughter

(Source: - https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/aug/19/japan-transgender-woman-parent-child-tokyo-high-court )

Nintendo Recognises Same-Sex Marriages, Even If Japan Doesn't:

- https://kotaku.com/nintendo-japan-same-sex-marriage-gay-law-ruling-1849171499

 

[PrimalxConvoy]

Singapore will repeal a law that bans gay sex, effectively making it legal to be homosexual in the city-state.

The decision, announced by Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong on national TV, comes after years of fierce debate.

The city-state is known for its conservative values, but an increasing number of people have called for the colonial-era 377A law to be abolished.

Singapore is the latest place in Asia to move on LGBT rights, after India, Taiwan and Thailand...

(Source: - https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-62545577 )

According to the video, the government also made it much harder to change the law to allow gay/LGBQT+ people to marry, sigh...

 

[Fero McPigletron]

 

[Galvaplexia]

View attachment 8929

OMG. That… would totally work on me.

 

[Fero McPigletron]

Yeah, I'm totally going to try it on a guy I like, hehe

 

[Galvaplexia]

I appreciate originality in attempted smoothness faux paus if there is enough self awareness and acknowledgement of awkwardness. It’s those who are either poised at all times or are complete bricks that have no self awareness of the brick-atude that bore me.

 

[PrimalxConvoy]

Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic has said September's EuroPride parade in Belgrade will not go ahead.

Mr Vucic's announcement comes after thousands of people marched in protest against the event earlier this month.
The president said he was not happy with the decision, but that Serbia had to concentrate on other issues, including trouble in Kosovo.

The parade organisers have said the parade will go ahead anyway, with any ban "illegal"

The international LGBT pride parade has been hosted in a different European city most years since 1992...

(Source: - https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-62700240

Btw, how do you/folks feel about the posting of links/news like this? Are they relevant? Perhaps they're too broad or an unwanted reminder of negative issues for some (LGBQT+) people here? Please let me know either way, cheers.

 

[The Doctor Who]

Seems fine, though if it's especially P&R-ish, it might be a good idea to put it there. Obviously we're in the P&R hotseat pretty often, so board guidelines might apply.

As dead as this thread is, it'd still be an... Unfortunate indicator, if the LGBT discussion thread wound up being locked behind a restricted forum, y'know?

 

[PrimalxConvoy]

Just saw this whilst searching for TF memes. Is it pro/against LGBQT+ issues?

 

[The Doctor Who]

I think it's probably just a neutral joke. Like, I've made the same pun a number of times.

Of course, artist intent is what it is.

 

[PrimalxConvoy]

Great news in the world of animation!

Peppa Pig: First same-sex couple for children's show

During an episode titled Families, which first aired on Tuesday on Channel 5 in the UK, where Peppa Pig is made, the eponymous character was introduced to friend Penny Polar Bear's mothers...

...Peppa Pig is by no means the first children's programme to feature same-sex couples. US cartoon Arthur, aimed at four to eight-year-olds, won praise back in 2019 after it showed a gay wedding during its 22nd series...

...Other popular cartoons to have touched on LGBT relationships have included Adventure Time and Steven Universe - both are also from the US but aimed at audiences aged 10 and above..."

(Source: - https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-62824913 )

And not so great (but unsurprising) news...

Gulf nations demand Netflix remove ‘offensive’ content

...The move appears to be in response to Netflix airing content that includes LGBTQ characters, as well as other material deemed “immoral”.

Saudi state television aired a report on Tuesday that included an interview with a woman identified as a “behavioural consultant” who described Netflix as being an “official sponsor of homosexuality”.

It also aired footage of an animated show that streams on Netflix, Jurassic Park: Camp Cretaceous, which showed two female characters kissing, though the footage was blurred out...

(Source: - https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2022/9/7/gulf-nation-demand-netflix-to-remove-offensive-content )

 

[The Doctor Who]

I appreciate shows like Peppa Pig doing that. There are a lot of shows doing damage control so to speak for LGBT issues, aimed at older audiences and children who already know or families that already don't get along.

But a lot of the bigotry we face comes from a foundational ignorance, ideas set in children's minds at an early age that become the framework for how they view the world around them. That can change in later life, obviously, but it can be really hard to break free from.

The other article is...as expected, honestly.

 

[Fero McPigletron]

It's kinda cool that there's a lot of two dad's in animation now. They're not the focus but cool that they're there.

 

[wonko the sane?]

Which is kind of the point: when you focus on THAT as either a plot point, or simply go to lengths to point it out; you're doing the exact opposite of what needs to be done. It's not a topic that needs attention; it's simply something that IS, and including low key in the background is exactly how to handle it. It's a thing that exists, and you don't need to pay any more attention to it than that. You see it, but it's not central and if you see it handled that way enough; it becomes normalized.

Of course, you're always going to have assholes like the saudi's who are going to throw a screaming fit, but HEY! Best estimates say that at current consumption they've got less than a decades worth of crude oil, so... not something we'll need to care about for much longer.

 

[PrimalxConvoy]

I don't think I would ever be able to include materials, be it a kids' book with LGBQT+ characters or themes (even in the background) or teaching materials that related to such issues, at any of the pre-schools or English-speaking centres I've worked at. I was asked by my Japanese and Filipino colleagues to stop mentioning my girlfriend to my kids (I'm a straight male) and keeping a photo of family or friends at work is taboo in Japan too. I don't think the Islamic school in Japan I currently work at would accept anything like that either. I don't think everyone there would be against it, but there are REALLY strict people there that are against faces being shown on pictures and most music in general. Then again, some of the young kids that will tell me that music and Tiktok are "haram" also happily watch YouTube clips of the Family Guy and violent videogames and play online shooters, etc...

Anyway, it seems that where I work in the world is vastly behind the societal norms of at least some parts of the US and other developed countries?

 

[The Doctor Who]

Anyway, it seems that where I work in the world is vastly behind the societal norms of at least some parts of the US and other developed countries?

Ehhh... I mean, I live in the US, so... Your milage may vary?

There are far worse countries to be queer in, and, like, the fact I can even have this conversation as an openly trans woman online without worrying that I'll be tracked down and assaulted/murdered is a definite positive.

On the other hand, I'm only out online and my coworkers don't know my fiancé is a trans woman. They don't know that I'm trans. I have to be careful about how I perform my femininity because there's nothing to stop a violent bigot from assaulting me if I bump into the wrong person. There's nothing to stop someone getting me fired from my job because they don't like who I am.

Bigotry and violence against minorities in this country is very much treated like the weather, sad, unfortunate, tragic even, but entirely impossible to predict or prevent.

It's a cult of ignorant apathy.

 

[PrimalxConvoy]

More great news!

"...Over Labor Day weekend, one of the biggest online security services providers, Cloudflare, made what it called a “dangerous” decision to block access to one of its most controversial customers, an increasingly violent alt-right web forum called Kiwi Farms.

The decision came two weeks into a pressure campaign dubbed "Drop Kiwi Farms," which was launched by Clara Sorrenti—online alias “Keffals”—a transgender activist and Twitch streamer among those targeted most venomously by Kiwi Farms. The goal was to protect people like Keffals and fight back by forcing Cloudflare and other Internet service providers to stop enabling Kiwi Farms’ escalating attacks on trans people and other vulnerable communities...

(Source: - https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy...i-farms-was-its-most-dangerous-customer-ever/ )

 

[PrimalxConvoy]

Ehhh... I mean, I live in the US, so... Your milage may vary?

There are far worse countries to be queer in, and, like, the fact I can even have this conversation as an openly trans woman online without worrying that I'll be tracked down and assaulted/murdered is a definite positive.

On the other hand, I'm only out online and my coworkers don't know my fiancé is a trans woman. They don't know that I'm trans. I have to be careful about how I perform my femininity because there's nothing to stop a violent bigot from assaulting me if I bump into the wrong person. There's nothing to stop someone getting me fired from my job because they don't like who I am.

Bigotry and violence against minorities in this country is very much treated like the weather, sad, unfortunate, tragic even, but entirely impossible to predict or prevent.

It's a cult of ignorant apathy.

Mind you, some toxic people don't even need our gender or sexuality as an excuse to sack someone without reason, or legal cause.

 

[NovaSaber]