The epidemic of young queers ignoring or cherrypicking queer history is really biting us all in the ass because Montana just tabled the bill that banned trans and gay panic, and many of the younger queers I’ve come across have no idea what gay panic really is, or what that means.
All they know about gay panic is the “Oh my gosh! I talked to a pretty girl/boy and I’m a girl/boy hehe so flustered” that at some point replaced the actual meaning of gay panic. Do you know how dangerous this is, that they don’t know of the dangers of trans and gay panic? It’s lethal.
As things in the US become more dire for the queer community, I’m begging the young queers: read up on queer - our, your - history. Talk to your elder queers. Really look into current politics surrounding the queer community. Don’t get all your info from social media, and absolutely do not take what you see on social media at face-value. Get yourself educated and prepared for what’s to come. It’ll save lives, I promise you.
for context, gay panic was a common legal defense used first in the mid-1800s and became a “mental condition” or some such nonsense in the early-1900s.
it could be used to justify assault and went as far as murder if the defendent said they found out the victim was gay and went into some primal rage.
the trans panic defense is the same concept but against trans people and i’m pretty sure it was most often used with cis men against trans women after or during sex.
basically a horrific but legal way to say that it was the queer persons fault for being queer and that justifies violence against them.
please let me know if any part of this is wrong and add stuff i left out!
Gay Panic has been a defense in 104 MURDER cases in America.
and if you use it as a defense, you are 32% more likely to get a reduction in your sentencing.
its not about being flustered. its about being murdered.
And Trans Panic will be just the same. We need to protect our community. We need to protect them.
