Heard on Facebook
I hate that word. Queer is something that doesn't fit in or isn't quite normal. I'm gay and I do fit in and I'm quite normal. So no matter if you are gay or straight, please don't call me queer.
– John N. Gibbs III
I see queer as a broad category. I hear queer and I think ALL LGBT persons and then, if one wants to be, someone can be labeled more specific. For instance, I'm in the queer category but, more specifically, I'm a lesbian. I completely embrace it because the word did not arise from negativity. Just like gay didn't either. Homophobic people have just used it to degrade our community. Hatred has been employed in many ways but only we can make it successful … We should accept the labels people use to identify themselves and keep them positive.
– Michelle Fernandez
I was called queer as a teenager and it hurt. However, as I have gotten older I have jumped on the wagon of reclaiming the word! I may self-identify as gay, however, queer really is a great word that includes all of the LGBTQ community. Who said the only folks in the LGBT community identify as one of these 4 identities? If bringing the Q for queer helps unite the community, I say "I'm queer, too."
– Jon Fitzgerald
It's getting old. I never hear younger people using that word as much as, well, watch an episode of "Skins" or "The Real L Word" for the whole smorgasbord of gay-word hybrids!
– Jonathan Lund
I'm straight, and I now use queer in the original meaning: odd or unusual. But I LOVE odd, so I CERTAINLY don't intend negative judgment … I generally don't use it that way around GLBTs I don't know well.
– Steve Duerksen
