I watched the film Kiki last semester. The documentary features LGBTQ youth of color. I was impressed by the stories of people in this community. This film really shows a well-rounded picture of every individual in this group by capturing their genuine emotions and words. After watching this film, I think people in this community are optimistic and lovely, even though they have to go through difficult situations, including health concerns and bias. However, there are still not enough qualified journalistic works related to the LGBTQ community nowadays. LGBTQ communities still suffer from inappropriate reporting nowadays.
There are not enough platforms where the LGBTQ community can voice their opinions. According to the report from RealClearPolitics, LGBTQ issues have been covered less in mainstream media outlets since the election of Donald Trump. Plus, according to the research from Advocate, terms related to LGBTQ have been seen less for the past three years.
- Frequency of Terms in main news outlets by Advocate
Besides the lack of voices from the LGBTQ community in mainstream media outlets, homophobia views presented in the news or social media can also hurt the LGBTQ community to a large extent. According to an article written by Mark O'Connell, a psychotherapist in private practice, homophobia is a reflexive reaction of fear and hatred to gay men dressed and behaving like women. Under this circumstance, homophobia can also contain misogyny. For example, I saw some news related to gay men. The journalists emphasize the “woman-like” qualities of them, instilling stigma in this group of people.
In terms of solutions to this, I think journalists should read through the GlAAD Media Reference guide. First, the guide asks us to mind the language while writing the LGBTQ issue. There are problematic terms that we should avoid, including biologically male, sex change, transgenderism. Also, I also agree that we should integrate LGBTQ people into stories that may not directly be related to LGBTQ issues. People in the LGBTQ community live normal lives just like everyone else. I went to a voting defense event this week. Even though this event was not directly focused on the LGBTQ community, our group also interviewed people in this community, trying to include their voices.
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