On the public stage, and especially when playing with extremely loaded images of gender and self-expression, it does matter who uses queer symbols.
. The problem with this kind of large-scale, media-driven phenomenon is that queer representation is sacrificed in order to privilege heterosexuality and more common relationship arcs and gender expressions.
The other kind of queerbaiting happens on a more individual scale. A celebrity adopts the"aesthetics" of queerness — playful gender expressions, edgy haircuts, and ambiguous sexuality — without actually, you know, being queer. By boiling down queerness into a set of aesthetic choices, this kind of queerbaiting denies the very real way that queerness is politicized. Queerness is a lived-in reality, a socio-political position people occupy with intense consequences, good and bad.
Celebrities who queerbait spin these aesthetic selections to pad their wallets, increase their fame, and justify taking up space in what should be queer-focused conversations. Then, when the fad is over they go back to gender conformity and socially acceptable, solid heterosexuality. A potential example of this? Styles' recent casting as a closeted gay man in the" set in the 50s when same-sex relationships were criminalized in the UK.
At its core, the problem with queerbaiting is that it's predatory. Imagine taking the best parts of queerness — the joy, the community, the creativity, artistic expression, or the current social clout — and leaving the hard parts behind:
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