The History of Queer "representation" in Media

[@andreja9425]

As a pansexual non-binary trans person, a lot of people feel entitled to me, my sexuality and my body, especially when I present more femininely. People will “confide” in me that they are attracted or fantasize about trans people and expect that telling me that will just make me throw myself at them. It’s so real that many people have this sexual attraction but will never want to be romantic with me. So many people will meet me in private and tell me how beautiful I am, but when it comes to something like meeting their family or even their friends sometimes, there’s no way. Bringing me around reveals their “perversion” their “degeneracy” or their “sickness.” It’s really frustrating, especially when coupled with the overwhelming anxiety I have to deal with worrying about getting hate crimed 24/7

[@herbyxrevolus]

Firstly, thank you for sharing your story & further complicating this discussion. It’s true, transphobia, particularly when displayed by those who are trans-attracted, is the most gross and disheartening thing. I’m sending you a virtual hug & positivity. I hope you feel it 🤍❤️

[@avirei98]

Yes, me and my friends talk about this all the time all the time. This exact same experience and I don't mess with those guys. Those of the same dudes that'll talk about you with their friends to your face and then come back without them and say how beautiful you are. I just don't mess with DL or discreet men for that very reason. If you cannot walk with me in the light sweetheart then you cannot have access to me. We no longer have to move in the shadows so why do you? Stand with us with pride for love. A life of misery hurting those around you.

[@Aroma_1111]

Not coming for you but genuinely wondering how one can be trans and non-binary. I don’t fully understand since I was under the assumption that the whole point of presenting as trans was to alleviate your gender dysphoria. Why add the extra label and just say you’re a trans woman that’s fluid in their gender identity or just be non binary if you don’t identify with either gender . Again not attacking just interested in the reasoning.

[@Lol-bh4lm]

@@Aroma_1111Fr, ppl like this give the community a bad rep. I don’t care if it’s rude or harsh, people like this are allergic to logic and criticism. I stay far away from those.

[@Aroma_1111]

@@Lol-bh4lm yeah.. I just wanted to know the thought process behind it bc we’re already scrutinized and told if we’re in the LGBTQ community we have to be confused and it’s people with identity issues and need for validation that stir the pot in the wrong direction. Some folks get mad when I say gatekeeping is necessary but this is why, bc unfortunately an entire community suffers behind people that are just lost and need help.

[@tylarobinson6783]

As an ally I completely hear you on how the black community only accepts the masculine presenting queer people but feel uncomfortable even acknowledging feminine queer people and it honestly irritates me how the community can accept one then turn their back on the other. This video was so informative and opened my eyes to all of the problems media has with showing queer people that I didn’t know of. You really did you thing on this one. 👍🏾

[@antimogul1316]

They don’t even accept masculine presenting queer ppl (ex: lil nas x). The blk straight community chooses a white man god over liberating all black lives.

[@ravenclawesome9093]

THANK YOU for mentioning the privilege masculine gay men recieve from straight ppl, god I swear that's 99% of the gay representation I see onscreen nowadays. It's like you're only deserving of respect if you're one of the "normal" ones.

[@caldw615]

It's why I really liked Captain Holt in Brooklyn 99. He's presented as a no nonsense and stern authority figure who has seen it all and has no patience for pety matters unless it's his personal petiness (Wunch!) but he still shows a more queer side with regards to the few times he says slang or his less common niche interests and hobbies. He's not stereotyped one way or the other and is a solid character overall. It's refreshing to see a character like that. Also RIP Andre Braugher

[@ChipsNsalsita]

This was a very thought provoking video. Especially the femphobia part. Appreciate your time to give your views.

[@herbyxrevolus]

Thank you & I appreciate you for your watching & commenting fr. It’s priceless 🥹🤍

[@nicholasrodinos4701]

Closeted homophobe/transphobe is such a lazy cliche, because it's never done with any real new angle. They don't talk about bigots coopting LGBT+ issues to attack other people (Muslim people, or other LGBT+ people (usually trans people). Hell, it doesn't talk about the wealthy/powerful LGBT people who sell out the community to bigots. If we want to do the LGBT person repressed by religion/conservatism in general, I say lean into the misery, but make it clear this person is still awful for other LGBT people and is kinda just trying to fit in, and never make them too sympathetic.

[@abdiqanihashi484]

As an exmusilm thanks for mentioning muslims 😭 they're homophobic as fuck.

[@styl3xp]

Something something Hbomberguy. Have a comment and a like to help with the algorithm at least a teensy bit. I somehow feel I don't have much experience with LGBT+ people, even though I know a handful. But it feels strange to even type something like 'experience with talking to LGBT+ people', because I have plenty of experience talking to people, so why would it be any different? Also where do those thoughts even come from..? I think you nailed it. I suspect those feeling come from the (mis)representation in a lot of media which have just wormed their way into my brain and make me think I haven't met a 'real' LGBT+ person because none who I know in real life match those stereotypes. You pulled some weird thoughts out of me there, good job. Keep at it.

[@reddsmoke904]

Im sorry, but that For Colored Girls scene always get me 😂😂😂 "Oh, so YOU doing the bending!?"

[@lumalalu]

ime in queer spaces i was often discouraged from being trans specifically bc of the "ugliness" of like, masculine traits on a "female" body. often, i think, from people who would also be disgusted by feminine traits on a "male" body. in fact i think these two things are like, the same mixture of transphobia and sexism with different aims. as a trans person, i feel like... transness embodies the extreme of gender nonconformity. and gender nonconformity is received by the patriarchy as, like, gender failure? so people who have internalized the rules of white cishetero patriarchy without realizing often dont examine their kneejerk disgust of that gender nonconformity. it was good and interesting to hear your perspective on the femphobia half of this :0 its so true that femininity is treated as a joke. i think that directly reinforces the desexualization/maybe even infantilization of effeminacy. i cant speak for the Black community's treatment of like, queer masculinity but, from a trans(masc?) perspective, i think what happened is that like, the scale of what gender nonconformity looks like is different for those who "should be male" vs those who "should be female". wearing a skirt as a boy is gender nonconformity, but wearing a t shirt and jeans as a girl is not. im allowed to be a tomboy as a kid, but if i keep being a tomboy, if i keep acting like and wanting to look like a man, it doesnt end well for me. even within the queer community - you should look up "butch flight"! "butch is a noun" is also a really really good bit of writing about the policing and rejection/enforcement of masculine identity. and butch lesbians tend to talk a LOT abt the way femmes objectify and sexually harass butches. i think what it comes down to is... masculinity and femininity have a certain threshold for respect. it depends on how well i perform my masculinity or femininity (and god help me if its both). if i slip even a little and betray my transness, my TRANSGRESSION of my assigned sex, any respect ive built up evaporates. when im fem, im treated as a cis woman (with all the sexism that implies); when im masc, im treated as something disgusting and ugly. my masculinity and my femininity are BOTH used to mock me.

[@yunglynda1326]

all of this

[@HeydonHensley]

Hbomberguy's Playlist "Your New Favorite KZbinrs" brought me here, and Yep! Herby Revolus is definitely brilliant, and I'm so excited to work through his catalog of work. 😄😄

[@jennymartinez7010]

I've been that person that is always very outspoken about my ally ship always sticking up or speaking out since I was 13 and my beliefs and the way I see things has evolved so much since then, and watching your videos has been the necessary continuation of the information I need or the perspectives that I hadn't taken into account before, I keep discovering biases and prejudices in me that I would've sworn weren't jus bc I was thinking well I'm an accepting person when I didnt really know Thank you for sharing your experiences and thoughts so openly, I'm having a lot of eye opening moments watching your videos

[@jennymartinez7010]

And I'm definitely using your videos to help me make my talking points with my husband. He grew up in Mexico in a very rural area where everyone is Catholic and for him he jus never grew up even having to think about other identities because it was like other identities didn't exist. AND HE WAS A FEMINIST even though that wasn't common there, and he is aware of the colorism in Mexico and things like that which was why I was like so he's accepting he jus has never had to even think about anything that's outside of his norm And trying to have these conversations with him has been so hard because he doesn't understand bc I'm talking about things he's never thought about but the way you explain things is so easy to understand I jus have to translate for him lol

[@pancom5326]

you should take up more of my time honestly. i love everything you had to say and even gave me plenty to think about for myself and how i view other queer folk. ill be watching more once i finish this hbomberguy playlist

[@shinadevon4464]

What an interesting and nuanced take. Thanks for sharing your thoughts.

[@herbyxrevolus]

No, Thank you for your compliment ❤️

[@shinadevon4464]

@@herbyxrevolus You deserve it! I’ve been watching since Fiq shouted you out. You are fantastic.

[@drsliveyesq]

I think you are the very best you tuber who speaks mostly extemporaneously about complex nuanced issues. I appreciate your geniune analysis

[@FrayBombTV]

i honestly love this video & i feel you so much on this. i have lots of thoughts but all in all i think you broke this down amazingly & your insight is always refreshing. i really hope that in the future the community really gets the representation it deserves.

[@herbyxrevolus]

Omg, thank you so much 😇& Me too tbh. Like I said, I do feel like a shift is happening but we still have so far to go, ya know!? On screen & in real life chile.

[@stevenbutler7583]

I like that you considered film an "historical document." The film P.U.N.K.S. was my first black queer film I've seen growing up. In the 90s if you were a gay person of color, you were effeminate, or DL ( thanks to E.Lynn. Harris' novels. ) We have a way to go in the black community in understanding sexuality in general.

[@RhythmAddictedState]

Pardon my ignorance, what's "DL"?

[@TariqShabazzi]

@@RhythmAddictedState "Down-Low", in this case, referring to those who are discreet with their sexuality and the activities regarding it.

[@HeiRo500]

This video is excellence. I have some thoughts to add. The Depraved Gheigh - DISNEY, we got your tea. A plethora of Disney villains are also queer coded: Captain Hook, Scar, Ursula, Hans. The whimsical villain is a big thing that is a remnant of the Hayes Code. It’s an insidious form of subconscious indoctrination The Closet Case Jock Jerkface - agreed, tired! It has outlived its usefulness in its current iteration. It takes the heat off of the perpetrators of queer violence by suggesting its an intracommunal problem (ie blames queer people for anti-queer sentiments, for violence etc.). It never really uses it to unpack why the internalization of anti-queerness is prevalent, but basically to push a form of respectability politic onto members of the community for not passing/assimilating. “If you didn’t shove that in our faces - read, if you suppressed yourself for external validation and approval - you wouldn’t have to get beat up” It also, to me, puts the assailant in a more sympathetic light than their target. The target is usually urged (internally or externally) to meet it with understanding or is written as a potential love interest which reads to me like telling a 3rd grader that if one of her classmates bullies her, it means he likes her. This trope also reinforces, to me, the depravity/deviant lens of queer depiction (suggests that it should be expected and accepted as a part of the narrative/ that due to “sinful” nature, it’s “better” than what we deserve.

[@chinchillabeans2972]

Okay yessss I love the complex topic. It’s not just a teaser title with superficial discussion. Thank you also you’re great!!

[@salmonmayswim]

16:14 this reminds me of the media’s coding of neurodivergent, chronically ill, physically or mentally impaired people. back then and today. if a character has BPD, OCD, Bipolar, autism, etc etc it is almost always paired with villainous, pathological, and othering portrayals. then used as a sole explanation of said characters villainous behaviours. it’s usually incorporated as an origin story for a villain rather than just a part of who they are. creates such harmful stereotypes. instead of ‘character did an awful thing that cannot be excused or explained away by anything’, the characters behaviour is entirely “explained” by their illness or whatnot. demonising the illness in the process. frustrating.

[@nomtikamjwana1140]

Thanks for sharing your thoughts Herby. Really challenges us to be more aware and critical of the complexities in the 'unlearning and relearning' journeys we're on. We're listening.

[@locoakunna7696]

idk i just discovered u and i already love ur energy 🧎⛰️

[@nicholasKMAmusic]

OOOOOOO why did I never think about that in Orange Is The New Black????!!!! Thats so fucked up, but so is the whole industry, as is the society it reflects as you aptly cited. Great video as always - but as a black fat queer, its just all so deep sometimes🥲🥲

[@herbyxrevolus]

In my view, very culturally insensitive & unaware tbh. & thank you friend 🤍. It does get deep and soo intermingled. I hope your creating spaces for peace in your life

[@acethehelpfulspace7240]

i think an interesting facet of the depraved queer archetype i've noticed as an aromantic person is a demonization of those who don't comply with compulsive amatonormativity: villains whose complete evilness is epitomized by "an inability to love".

[@iriannaf]

Ready for this vid!🍿❤

[@herbyxrevolus]

Love you for being the first comment 🥹🤍

[@javantenova]

Great video! Thank you for being a megaphone for these very topics I’m always ranting at heterosexuals about lol

[@beckfink6261]

The video was amazing but i kept getting distracted by your outfit!! i love your shirt and your jewelry! who knows where this person shops, i am obsessed.

[@joshuadomingue8589]

one of your more underrated underwatched videos

[@cupkelpie4656]

Found you through hbomberguy. Love your analysis, a very concise take. Subscribed!

[@joshuadomingue8589]

you really got me thinking on a deeper level

[@dianawinters1411]

I loved the cutaway about pronoun use... it was just really great for some reason I can't explain.

[@SecretFoxfire]

I'm late to this one (so grateful to hbomberguy for directing us here) but thank you so much for this excellent video. I didn't realize I was a trans man until my mid-30s because I didn't know it was an option. I never heard the word "transgender" until college, and then it was only trans women, and they all said the "I always knew I was a girl!" line and I knew I couldn't be trans because... I didn't always know. I knew I hated being a girl, knew I wished I was a boy, but no one told me that meant something and I could be my real self and be happy. Anyway I was too feminine to be a man, right? And I was attracted to men! Of course, men were never attracted to me, because I was too masculine. 🙃Gradually over the years I started to see more trans representation in the media, but it was mostly trans women, usually played by cis men. The only trans men I saw on screen were played by cis women and it was always about how tragic their lives were. It WAS media representation that finally got through to me, but not trans representation. Of all things, it was Schitt's Creek. For the first time I saw an effeminate man (pan in the show, gay in real life) not played as comic relief. Not just a ridiculous caricature to be laughed at, but a complex character worthy of love and respect. I found myself identifying with him in ways that surprised me, in ways I hadn't identified with other effeminate male characters because they were always only there to be laughed at. I finally had my eureka moment - I wasn't a masculine straight woman, I was a slightly effeminate gay man. Once it clicked, I started transitioning immediately, and now it's wild to realize how much of my life I spent thinking not that I was unique and interesting and different, but that there was something shamefully wrong with me. Forced myself to try to be something I wasn't for over three decades, miserable the whole time, and all solely because I truly didn't realize I had another option. Because I'd NEVER seen anyone else like me. To this day I've still only ever seen two trans male characters in any media played by actual trans men. The stories were still mostly about how hard it is to be trans, though. We're still a long way from sufficient diverse representation. Anyway, thank you for putting all these nuanced concepts into such eloquent words. I feel seen in a way I haven't in a long time. You are a brilliant, gorgeous human being, and I can't wait to watch all the rest of your videos. 💖

[@realniqqa101]

I think a lot of people would like the movie "The Celluloid Closet". It's a deep dive into LGBTQIA+ people in the media. I get tired of the stereotypes in media of gays and the idea that there are too many gays and trans people in media. The hatred of feminine gay men and masculine lesbian women comes from gender standards. Gay men get more physical violence as men. Lesbian get alot of people who assume they are bisexual or women haters.

[@noahthomas-sneed7515]

i dont know why they was mad at Uncle Clifford’s sex scene cuz Uncle Cliff got a whole wagon🫢🥴😍. lil murda did what he needed with the first season lol. you always eat with your content Herby!

[@herbyxrevolus]

Mamas is definitely thicker than a bowl a cold oatmeal. Idk how but I didn’t notice until this season when she hit the pole. 🍑 😍. & thank you friend 🤍

[@noahthomas-sneed7515]

@@herbyxrevolus you are hilarious! Je vous adore🫶🏾

[@frankmacaw6717]

i dont like how many gay relationships in media are written by women, I watched brigiton with my mum, she thought id like the gay stuff, but it was obviously written exclusively for straight women

[@MarikoMiziyaki]

You should do a review of “Noah’s Arc.” Would love to see it!

[@fultonyl1]

You are so right love your commentary brother

[@affable.pebble]

Hate it when there is a moment in a movie when there's a hint someone might be queer, and then it's immediately debunked. It makes it seem like this idea of a main character or a somewhat major character being queer is unrealistic and laughable, it's so disappointing.

[@dutchrobinson3922]

Omg I love this video

[@carly10347]

Love this video

[@Sevvolf]

I'm irritated by the prevalence of the cliche feminine stereotype. I rarely see the guy who just happens to be gay. I'd love to see a guy whos almost anti-stereotype in the sense that he's a "mans man" and just happens to like dudes.

[@MariAntawn]

Watch Love Victor please share your opinion

[@Bee-f7r]

I loved moonlight . It was such a beautiful black queer love story and journey.Through him acknowledging his sexuality and traumas. I honestly crave more black queer representation and versatility in media . But religion is such a ridiculous and toxic way to brainwash people to thinking if you’re not straight . You are already going down the wrong path. Having more representation is media is so important. But we are also struggling with colorism , texturism, misogyny and negative archetypes displaying in media . Even in pose ( loved the show). But every dark skin trans woman/queer had to suffer or had no love interest. There are so much layers to this conversation.

[@realniqqa101]

@user-yk4lr1pt3h Hear me out. The reason so many dark skin trans black women were killed off as said by one of the producers is because of specific issues trans dark skin women went through. That many more dark skinned trans women were facing violence and death. Sometimes paler skin helps people be perceived as more feminine or womanly. I do wish they could of honed on that without killing a main character.

[@jnkazee2526]

Wait did you just do a stereotype of black men hitting on lesbian women?? Isnt this supposed to be how media portrays these stereotype or is it just true depending on what you believe in is shown????

[@herbyxrevolus]

What I discussed was the kind of disrespect so many lesbian women feel and have to endure from heterosexual men who don’t respect their sexual proclivity, irrespective of race.

[@jnkazee2526]

. id challenge that cadence and dialect but okay, yet even then. thats still a stereotypical portrayal.

[@ockyj3321]

@@herbyxrevolus ok but whats ironic about this nuanced discussion you wanna have is, you leave out the full spectrum of all of it., it aint unique to cis men. bisexual women have said they feel this way bout how lesbians have venomous disdain towards bisexuals while transsexuals tend to objectify us as their experiment in finding their own comfort in what they really look for along with harboring similar stereotypes about bisexuals. But like many things queer bi people, and all those other dynamics get left off cause its "divisive". But saying it about cis men isnt.

[@AGEE_95]

@@jnkazee2526 It's in fact very accurate, though.

[@realniqqa101]

@jnkazee2526 Men used to hit on me when I was a stud. It's a real thing. Femmes, stemmes, studs and no label lesbians all get the bullshit from straight men who want to turn them out or assume they are bisexual. It's not a stereotype I happens often.

[@therealrodney8561]

Time for Hollywood to take gay culture from the club room to the boardroom do you agree?

[@Graymalkinn]

Hi I have synesthesia and I hate bringing it up because of people's questions, doubts, and disappointments ... like its always makes me feel dumb but your voice smells so much like cooked pasta to me that I'm struggling to focus

[@Lunaruaria]

🖤💛🤍💜