At the 1990 new york pride parade a group of anonymous activists handed out the manifesto queers read this! The manifesto was at turns angry at straight society, exasperated by the response to the aids crisis, and incensed by the increasing homonormative agenda of many gay activists. It demanded that straights respond to the brutality that queers faced but more than just this, it was a heavy indictment on the prevailing norms of racism, misogyny and homophobia.
As a response to the society, they demanded that queers march naked, scream louder, and take up public space. In short, that queers bash back against a society which despised those outside the norms of gender and sexuality. While today some of the historical context is no longer relevant, many of the demands might yet hold true. In this next installment of the mfu’s manifesto series, we will read queers read this! And discuss what we might take from it today.
