Queers

A question about the relative privilege of gay men within queer communities turns into a debate about the value of analysing privilege through an identity-based lens at all. Benjamin and Simon grapple with the question: does assigning privilege to certain groups of people help us overcome oppression, or simply drive us apart?

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An article about the idea of “full equality” for LGBTIQ people gets Simon and Benjamin wondering what the idea even means, particularly once most of our civil and legal rights have been taken care of. If we can’t see a sexual revolution coming any time soon, where does the idea of equality stop making sense, even on its own terms?

‘‘Full equality’: how Netherlands is pointing the way for Australia on LGBT rights’, by Paul Karp

‘Canberra business cleared of discrimination for firing no voter’, by Jesse Jones

Facebook comment, by Andrew Robert

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After a debate in the media over the ethics of gay parenting, Benjamin interviews gay dad and rainbow families advocate Scott Williams about the politics of queer families, assumptions made about adoption and surrogacy, and the possibilities of family units that don’t fit nuclear norms.

More information about Rainbow Families NSW can be found on their website.

‘Julie Bindel: Gay men who use surrogacy: “Narcissistic, rich, racist, entitled pricks”’, by Jake Hook.

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Earlier this year, Benjamin was asked to present a lecture on ‘The Future of Sex and Sexuality’ as part of Rising Minds, a lecture series that hosts speakers from London, New York, Toronto and Sydney to examine topics in technology, business and culture.

This episode is from the Rising Minds podcast feed, which they have generously allowed us to share here. You can find more of their lectures on their website, www.risi.ng, or subscribe to Rising Minds on iTunes.

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The queer acronym (LGBTIQA+, etc.) seems to be getting longer with each passing year, but who gets to be a part of it? Benjamin and Simon start out wondering whether it’s useful to dissect which letters are in and which are out, leading to a surprising discussion about the limits of abstract debate when it comes to effecting political change in the real world.

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The #MeToo movement against sexual assault has dominated global headlines over the past six months, but what does it mean for queer communities? Looking specifically at gay male spaces, Simon and Benjamin consider some complex and difficult questions about the nature of consent.

'How gay men normalize sexual assault', by Phillip Henry

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At the Better Together conference in Melbourne in January, Simon interviewed Senator Janet Rice, the Australian Greens' LGBTIQ spokesperson, about the overlaps between environmentalism and queer politics, the legacy of the marriage equality postal survey, and the future of LGBTIQ politics in Australia inside and outside of parliament.

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As Australian politics is embroiled in a good old-fashioned sex scandal, Benjamin and Simon dig through the muck to ask: why do we care so much about people having sex anyway? Can queers be the vanguards of a society where sex is no longer the logical endpoint of human intimacy?

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We usually think of stereotypes as wholly negative things, but when it comes to queers, what are the consequences of rejecting them? Simon and Benjamin take a long, hard look at stereotypes, asking where they come from, how they limit our experience, and whether it’s possible to move past stereotypes without throwing some queers under the bus.

‘The most ethical way to allow gay men to donate blood is to end HIV’, by Nic Holas

‘PrEP revolution: Shame, class and bareback sex’, by Shafik Zahyr

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It's the first ever Queers live episode! Recorded at the Better Together 2018 conference in Melbourne, Simon and Benjamin were joined by researcher Hannah McCann and advocate Morgan Carpenter to take on a big question: are queers better together?

For more information about Hannah McCann: binarythis.com

For more information about Morgan Carpenter: morgancarpenter.com

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