Last month, an inset in local newspaper Sinar Harian outlined for the public at large a series of crosscheck reference points to identify whether or not you, or someone you know, might be – GASP – a homosexual.
Other than regurgitating inaccurate, and at times, conflicting tropes that seemed to have been derived from what happens when you take the storylines in bad quality gay porn too seriously, the list was nothing short of an attack on the already maligned Malaysian LGBTQ+ community.
Soon after, netizens who are a part of, and/or support their LGBTQ+ brothers and sisters, began to tweet messages of their own personal stories, experiences, as well as their own perspectives on how one can still support the individual without necessarily agreeing with their sexual orientation (disappointing but small steps, we guess).
At the end of their message they hashtagged #CampurLGBT — literally “mix” LGBT, but essentially calling for inclusion of the community as fellow human beings.
What’s transpired since the hashtag started is an evolving conversation, enlightening the reader not just on the real struggles of what it’s like being someone who doesn’t fit into a mainstream box, but also those who believe that their religious convictions hinder full acceptance of homosexuality, yet are able to differentiate between a person, and their actions, who only God can judge.
Perhaps the most elucidating thread on the topic came via user Dorian Wilde, who identifies as a trans man, a pansexual, and a feminist.
If you’re wondering why #campurLGBT is so important, here is the best summary we’ve seen:
Where those who support fellow humans see Twitter as a platform for inclusion, others have started an opposing narrative under the hashtag #TolakLGBT (reject LGBT). Their messages are less nuanced, relying mostly on homosexuality being unnatural (which is funny, because it naturally exists!).
They also seem to be confused as to what qualifies as human rights, that is to say — they apply to all humans.
It’s here where the importance of #CampurLGBT becomes all the more apparent: In a country where the voices of the oppressed, bullied and maligned only get heard when it’s too late — it’s what we need in real time to get the discussion of inclusion going.
