About the whole Entertainment Weekly thing…
So, for those of you that don’t know, EW excluded Sterek from its most popular pairing poll, despite Sterek having gotten the most nominations. All other same-sex pairings were left out, too.
Way to go, EW. You just had your very own Chick-fil-A moment! Congratulations!
That was a crappy move, but you know what, fandom? If anything, I think that makes Sterek more likely in canon, not less. Jeff has repeatedly stated that queer visibility is very important to him, personally and artistically, and that he’s determined to create a non-heteronormative show.
This is the the kind of bullshit that would make anyone with that sense of fairness narrow their eyes and want to take a stand.
I know that this doesn’t directly concern Jeff, as he didn’t participate in the pairing nominations (I think? Lol, who knows?), but I do hope he hears about this blatant display of homophobia, if for no other reason than to realize how inspiring and socially relevant it would be to have a couple like Sterek become canon.
It was important to us on a fannish level, before, as well as on a social level. But now, it’s even more important socially than it was before. Or rather, it’s more clear why it’s so important.
This is about equal rights and fair visibility, and not being silenced or shoved back into the closet. It’s been a hurtful experience for those EW subscribers who nominated their favorite pairing and then had their nominations deleted, just because the pairing wasn’t ‘straight’ enough. Excuse me? That sort of erasure isn’t just a passive campaign of la-la-la-can’t-hear-the-gay-folks, but an aggressive campaign of suppression.
It started with Sterek, but it’s bigger than Sterek. It’s not just about the fun we have with this pairing and how much it means to us to see Stiles and Derek grow to trust and care for each other - it’s also about the fact that Sterek becoming canon would start to level the playing-field in terms of queer visibility.
And since Teen Wolf is a show designed for teens, it would mean a lot to the gay, lesbian, bi and trans kids out there to know that there is a youth TV show that doesn’t reinforce the homophobia that’s rampant in society, that doesn’t make it harder for them to love themselves, that doesn’t discourage them from exploring their sexualities and being true to who they are.
Stiles questioning and exploring his sexual identity would give us a character-growth arc that is desperately needed by LGBTQ youth, today. Not everyone starts out being secure and confident in their own sexuality, and not everyone has never had to question it. Hell, most of us do have to question it, at some point, because the world is busy questioning us. We can’t all immediately start dating the person we want without first wondering whether we’re allowed to do so, whether it’s acceptable to do so or whether it’s even safe to do so.
It’d be great for a television show to finally showcase a bisexual teenager in a that isn’t 100% sure about what he needs, and has to figure himself out as he goes. A boy that’s free to figure himself out, in a non-heteronormative world. A boy that’s been in love with the same girl for years, because he’s steadfast like that, but now that he’s finally moving on, he finds himself falling for another guy, instead. Why shouldn’t we have that character arc? It would mean so much to so many people, especially to the youth. It would make a real difference.
Jeff, I really hope you’ll go there. You don’t have to, of course - it’s your story, and it’s a lovely story, as it is - but it’d be so meaningful, socially, if you did. :)
None of that takes away EW’s responsibility for the recent kerfuffle, though. What happened there has to be addressed. Either EW issues some sort of formal apology and tries to explain (not excuse) its sudden onset of homophobic madness, or… well, I guess they’ll lose a lot of subscribers? Which is what they deserve, after pulling a stunt like that.
I mean, seriously, ignoring the nominations altogether was bad enough, but deleting them so as to try to hide their homophobia?
Damn. That was a low blow, EW. That was a low blow, indeed.
I am going to keep reblogging pretty much everything about this that comes across my dash. This isn’t just about fandom; this is, in and of itself, abig deal.
These are all excellent points. And I really hope EW issues a formal apology and explanation, because while I have no urge to ever subscribe to them, I’d like to at least be able to see the magazine without feeling furious and kind of sick.
