Identities

There are so many new perspectives and lessons I learned from the videos and readings this week. In particular, I found iO Tillet Wright, Lana Wachowski, and Stella Young to be very inspirational. In Wright’s TED talk, she really opened my eyes to the complexity of one’s identity. At some point in the video, she mentioned how she realized her mission of photographing as many “gays” as she could was flawed because there were a “million different shades of gay.” She realized she was creating the very thing she had spent her life trying to avoid- another box. She watched so many existential crises unfold in front of her when she added the question to the release form that asked people to quantify themselves on a scale of one to 100 percent gay. When I talk about sexuality or gender identification, I am often worried I am not using the politically correct terms and coming off as ignorant. But the truth is, maybe I am kind of ignorant when it comes to this subject. I have so many other aspects of my identity, and they all seem easier to deal with and clearly identify so I tend to ignore the subject whenever I can. While I have known since I was a kid that I am not straight, I wouldn’t consider myself as gay. And I don’t really feel the need to find a label for myself.  And that was kind of the point of her talk- we shouldn’t feel the need to put ourselves in a box. Everything is fluid and it we really shouldn’t feel the need to identify as one or the other. It’s ok to be “grey.”

Stella Young’s TED talk really gave me a perspective I have never thought of before. She criticized society for exploiting disabled people to make themselves feel better about their own selves. I am definitely guilty of this one. Whenever I feel bad about myself, I often think to myself that I should not complain because some people have it worse. For example, I’ll think that I shouldn’t complain that my thighs are too big because at least I have legs. I shouldn’t complain that I’m not as smart as others because at least I’m not mentally challenged. Young says that this is wrong because disabled people should not be considered extraordinary just for being able to get out of their bed in the morning and remember their name. They should be held to the same standard as non-disabled people. That said- I found her to be very inspirational- not because she is a disabled person, but because she is a smart and independent woman with a successful career. Lana Wachowski’s acceptance speech was very uplifting. I was very inspired by her courage. Not just because she is openly trans, but because you could see that she was very nervous to be up there making a speech. She was doing it for all the other people out there like her who might feel lost. She was putting her fears aside to help others and that is something that is very inspirational.