Fuck No, Dan Savage!

Dan Savage’s Play “Miracle!”

Feeling furious about the blatant ableism in the production, I was hoping to find a review that called attention to it and spoke to how we shouldn’t be producing theatre that reproduces/encourages oppression (I haven’t read any that do) and then I read this

The pink placard above the stage of Miracle!, which opened at Intiman on July 14, says it all: “The play you are about to see is deeply offensive to the Deaf-Blind community. Do not tell them about it. Keep your hands shut.”

Not funny. At all. This is not about whether the humor is crass or vulgar which all of the reviews praise no end. It’s about reproducing oppressive narratives, passing it off as a clever joke, and then telling everyone to not be so uptight. Disabled people are systematically denied access in theatre arts—I can’t even begin to count how many theaters I have been in that do not have easily accessible stages, not to mention how few directors there are that would understand needs around dyslexia, stuttering, etc.—and the above “joke” indicates the belief that the disabled community does not attend theatre either. And while I imagine that the producers would respond that it is a joke and that they value accessibility (in the narrowest sense), this type of joking reveals very real underlying assumptions about who theatre is for and what bodies and minds are deemed acceptable on stage.

If this upsets you as much as it does me, write to the Intiman and let them know:

Intiman Theatre

201 Mercer St | PO Box 19537
Seattle, WA 98109
E: info@intiman.org

Catching up on submissions to FNDS! People have submitted some great asks and submissions, and they’re finally coming up! 

~Kerry

Anonymous asked: Reading this blog, I've realized that the way Dan misrepresents himself goes even further than his faux-ally shtick. He's famous as The Gay Advice Columnist, but he doesn't actually *write* any such thing. It's all opinion pieces and editorializing made to *look* like an advice column and when he gets it right, it's purely incidental. Like any bully, he wants a steady supply of vulnerable targets, and how better to ensure that than pretending you want to help them?

crazyalliemonkey asked: I almost want to make a It get's better for all the fat lesbians who are super butch and everybody else that doesn't fall into the pretty white boy from middle class privileges that can make it because the only thing against them is being gay. There is such a thing called intersectionality and Dan Savage doesn't seem to recognize it, neither to most gay white cis men who have beautiful bodies and come from money. Kind of like a the hell it does get better!

HIV Awareness? If You Don’t Live It, STFU Dan.

So, I just typed up a very long blog about how Dan Savage has been able to offend me in every possible way, including this morning. However, my computer crashed, and I was a silly little thing and lost it. Therefore, this is the new, briefer version of my post (which hopefully hits my same points >_<)

I’m a homoromantic asexual in a committed relationship with a ‘normal sexual’ person. Some of my best friends are Trans. Some of my best friends are bi and pan. Our supposed ally, Mr. Savage (what an ironic last name for such an ignorant beast) has hurt me and all of my friends with his ignorance. How could he possibly be any more of a jerk off? Well…I’ll tell you.

One of my very best friends has HIV. And I will tell you now, he has gone through a lot stuff. Not only does he have to deal with this life altering disease, but he also has come face to face with the fearsome stigma that comes along with HIV. The treatment like you are something to be ‘contained’. This diseased ‘object’.

Another friend of mine and I are working on a play that is intended to enlighten individuals about the stigma, and hopefully, fight the stigma. We have conducted interviews and we are doing a LOT of research. Well this morning, at around 4am to be exact, I discovered that Mr. Dan Savage had some lovely things to say about those who wish to end the HIV stigma:

”HIV [prevention campaigns] are fatally compromised, terribly conflicted. They seem [sic] designed, first and foremost, to avoid making the already HIV+ guys feel bad about being positive. That fear—that this, that, or the other HIV education campaign might stigmatize having HIV and hurt the feelings of guys who have HIV — is paralyzing and it leads to neutered, ineffective, flaccid campaigns.” 

And I lost it. What. An. Asshole. I found more things he posted. Disgusting things. Things like saying that the two way street argument is used by “selfish, self-serving, sociopathic garbage”. He compared HIV positive people who engage in riskier activity, (malicious or otherwise) to the murderers of Matthew Shepard. He also mentioned that if he had his way that people who give others HIV (intentionally or not) should have to pay for the other person’s medication, instead of the government. I am not making this up.

What makes me mad about this is that Savage himself is engaging in perpetrating the stigma. Do NOT get me wrong. I long for the day that HIV statuses can be openly spoken about, and people can make smart choices for themselves. But by ignoring that the stigma has any impact on the spread of HIV is IDIOTIC. Especially for someone who is our “ally”. 

Danny boy claims he has friends who are HIV positive friends that aren’t ashamed to openly talk about their statuses. That’s great for them. What he fails to realize, it doesn’t work like an umbrella. He fails to realize, yet again, that people can’t be so generally categorized. And by using demonizing language and hurtful words, DAN SAVAGE is making things worse. He is being what his precious “It Gets Better” organization speaks out against: a BULLY.

Here’s my thoughts for Danny Boy. It’s great that you want the spread of HIV to stop. It’s great you know people who can be open about their status and not engage in risky behavior with their partners. But until you have lived with the disease and are bullied or discriminated against for having it,or until you have a friend who feels like shit and like a worthless diseased freak, and until you come to understand feelings of shame and hurt that some people with the disease experience, you need to shut your privileged, gay, asshole of a mouth, stop denying the stigma, and talk about something that you have actual knowledge about. FUCK NO, DANNY BOY.

 *END OF RANT; I apologize for any grammar errors. It’s 5am, and it’s been a long night of research.*

 http://hivster.com/?p=3302

http://rense.com/general13/prev.htm

http://www.chicagoreader.com/chicago/savage-love/Content?oid=918100

http://www.thestranger.com/seattle/SavageLove?oid=20705

I haven’t read the book in its entirety, so perhaps he makes up for it slightly later on, but I was looking at a copy in the library and throughout the jacket flap of the It Gets Better book, he and his husband use the term LGBT interchangeably with “gay and lesbian” and only mentions homophobia as a problem facing LGBT+ kids in schools today. All of this means that I, as a bisexual transmasculine teenager, do not exist according to and am not helped by this book.

Anonymous asked: I am white, cisgendered and hetrosexual. I don't know if it's my place to say anything here, but I wanted to add my support to what you're doing. Through the internet I have read a lot of eye opening things and I'm trying to become a better person, this is one of the many blogs that has helped me, I really respect the effort and thought you put into it. I thought I would send you a word of encouragement and gratitude, as one human being to another.

Thank you! I’m glad that this blog has been helpful for you. :) 

~Kerry

avatarjason asked: Bless this blog. I just did a research paper on bisexuality in gay communities and dedicate a whole four pages to Dan savage and his biphobia.

hereforourenjoyment asked: Thank you for your blog!!!

You’re very welcome!

~Kerry

Watching this documentary on Netflix about asexuality

ballisticnarcissistic:

Dan Savage’s smug commentary the whole time is really pissing me off. He says that asexual people marching in the San Francisco Pride Parade is “hilarious” and that they are marching for “the right to do nothing.”