Surprise, another poem! Blythe Baird recently published a book (which I bought and cried over, 10/10 would recommend) and this poem especially struck me, and I also think ties into Butler’s prefaces. Baird identifies as a lesbian, and this poem challenges the idea that if one day, she realized she wasn’t completely gay, who does she ask for forgiveness? Who does she apologize to? Does she come out of the closet again? I know from personal experience, the idea of “picking a label” is terrifying, but also annoying in a way to even do. Although labels are just a constraint, we have them, and we want people to use them. It’s completely acceptable to be drawn to certain names and labels, but if you pick the wrong one, you risk being teased, shamed, doubted (again), and more. Even more so, the idea that she would have to apologize in the first place alludes to another problem that comes with sexual identities. The underlying fear of not only coming out, but later identifying differently, often brings self doubt and anxieties about being accepted, once again. Society pushes these names and labels on the LGBTQ+ community, but sometimes they cause battles not only within the community, but for those in and outside the community when it comes to identity.
Blythe Baird’s “The Lesbian Reevaluates”
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Labels are a HUGE deal in this world we live in and even when we say “male” and “female”, that is giving us a label too! I find it funny how we are the ones who give words meaning, yet it is so easy for these labels to infiltrate our psyche and cause mental destruction. This makes me wonder why heterosexuality is the default. Why does one have to “come out” in the first place? There are more issues people should be focusing on rather than someone else’s sexual orientation and Butler emphasizes this. It’d be in our favor to break the stigma on “right” and “wrong” labels, we are humans who are changing every day!
Blythe makes a fantastic (and beautifully presented) point, regarding the duality of labels. On one hand, labels create comfort via allowing people to validate and express their identities, or by bringing together communities of shared experience; however, on the opposite hand, labels have the power to create restriction, potentially limiting one’s exploration of identity.
Both the greatest benefits and the greatest detriments of labels can be seen in the history of the LGBT+ community. Like you said, issues surrounding labels cause conflict from within the LGBT+ community, as well as enabling hostility directed inward, from outside influences. Labels have long been a means of comradely for LGBT+ people… but, as time passes, it’s become increasingly clear that labels are not a perfect method of describing (or defining) identity.