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Gabriel Roman

Jennifer Rodrick

Queer Studies 115

September 23, 2017

The Positive Impact of an Online World for the Queer Identity

The constant use of the phrase Its 2017, no one cares, is a phrase that signifies the

mentality of our current generation. I interpret the phrase to signify the mentality of our current

generation is accepting of anyone or anything, we are in a progressive era. In this era that we live

in, according to Statista.com a statistics portal that derives its statistics from over eighteen

thousand sources over two billion people are on social media. This means that social media has a

platform with over two billion people, in an era where people are more and more accepting.

According to the Washington Post, forty seven percent of the world uses the internet or has

internet access. Nearly half the world being internet users and social media being so popular in a

generation in which people are more and more accepting is the reason as to why I believe that

social media and the internet have helped the queer identity be accepted. The queer identity has

positively benefited and has been helped to be accepted from social media and the internet by

having brands make pro-LGBQT advertisements, through the emergence of gay dating apps, and

by being able to spread positive queer identity beliefs quicker.

On Friday June 26, 2015, the Supreme Court legalized gay marriage. That same night

various brands posted advertisements on social media in support of the Supreme Courts

decision. According to an article by Consumer News and Business Channel (CNBC), the wide

variety of brands that posted advertisements in solidarity of the decision ranged from Starbucks

and American Apparel to yogurt-brand Chobani and Delta airlines. Brands that offer different
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services all became involved. One may question the authenticity and means of the post, but when

looking at the content of these advertisements we see the posts are made in well means.
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In the image above we see a same-sex endorsement via Twitter post by Delta. Delta does not

directly promote themselves in the image. The link they provided to go along with their post

directs us to a statement in which Delta expresses its belief of standing in solidarity with the

choice to legalize same sex marriage. Delta states We celebrate the diversity of our employees

and customers, and we applaud the Supreme Courts decision to ensure the fundamental right to

marriage for everyone (Delta). This shows us that Deltas purpose in making the post was not in

order to make profit, but in order to show that they truly do believe in same sex marriage. In

order to truly understand the significance of brands speaking out in solidarity we go back to

CNBCs article Brands Use Social Media to Back Same-Sex Marriage by Michelle Castillo.
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American Apparels senior vice president of marketing Cynthia Erland was quoted as saying,

We have 5 million followers on social media, it's the unique voice of our brand and how we

communicate with our audience (Castillo). This shows us that American Apparel was willing to

sacrifice losing certain customers just so that they could publicly endorse same-sex marriage.

In the United States, we are in a progressive era, and while we are able to live knowing

that we have a choice to believe in whatever we choose we sometimes forget that across the

globe there are people who do not have the same freedom. In the article Where Dating Apps

Save Lives by Christina Nunez of National Geographic, we learn that other countries do not

have this freedom. Nunez states More than seventy countries have laws that make same-sex

relations a punishable offense (Nunez), the quotation by Nunez helps us see that the queer

identity is not accepted on an international level. The information that Nunez provides us

should have us questioning the lifestyles that people who identify as being part of this queer

identity live in. How are people that identify as queer fit into a society in which being

attracted to someone of the same sex is viewed as a crime? The gay dating app Grindr has

been attempting to better the lifestyles of members of the queer community, specifically in

India. According to Nunezs article, Grindr has partnered with GHAR, the Gay Housing

Assistance Resource, an organization in which members of the LGBTQ community are able to

find other LGBTQ community members, in order to unite and be together in a country in

which their sexual status is looked at as a crime. According to Nunez, Grindr not only assists

the queer identity through a non-profit organization they provide direct help to nations and

communities in which the number of members of the LGBTQ community is limited. Nunez

states Grindr has users in 197 countries. A lot of people are using it in places where there

may be no gay bars, there may be no gay youth groups. So, its a really important way for
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people to be able to even just see that other LGBT people in their culture exist (Nunez).

Nunez shows us that Grindr is a way for members of the LGBT community to see that they

are not alone. This is important especially in communities with limited amounts of members

of the LGBTQ communities because it will allow men and women (specifically the youth)

know that they are not alone when it comes to not identifying as a heterosexual. The fact there

is even a dating app developed specifically for people of the queer community is significant

all on its own, because what was looked at as strange, is now looked at as socially accepted.

Jonathan Wells, an author for the Telegraph investigated the effects of the revolution

the internet caused in favor of the LGBTQ community. Wells did this by sitting down with

one YouTubes better-known figures, YouTuber, Tyler Oakley. Wells questioned Oakley on

various topics, but he focused on asking about the benefits of identifying as being a member

of the queer community while still being young. Oakley agreed that acceptance was slowly

beginning to become even more common due to the accessibility and continuous publishing of

information on the gay community. Oakley, said Nobodys going to get it all from the very

start. The internet at least allows everyone to hear these perspectives at a much faster rate than if

we had to do it without it (Wells). This quotation is in regards to Oakley viewing the world as a

place in which everything is more accessible, with information being produced at higher rates,

and there is actual coverage of the gay community. Information being pumped out at higher

rates is significant when it comes to garnishing attention to a cause whether it be related to the

queer identity or not, having people be aware and acknowledge your side of the story is

significant to making a positive change. Wells and Oakley believe that since information on the

queer identity is being printed a positive change is occurring for LGBTQ people.
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When it comes to the queer identity it is hard to deny that discrimination exists. When

dealing with any minority group one is going to encounter discrimination. In order to overcome

that discrimination when the appropriate time comes, those with giant platforms must use them

in order to conduct positive change. By positively endorsing same-sex marriage, the companies

who posted out in solidarity of the Supreme Courts decision to allow same-sex marriage, did

their job in using their platform to inform their millions of followers that they agreed and stood

for social justice. When it comes to sticking up for the minority we do it because its the correct

action to do, and we also do it to show minorities that they are not alone. Sometimes that is not

enough minorities need to know that theyre not alone in the sense that there are others like them.

Grindr is able to help the LGBQT community by having an application that literally shows you

other people just like you, and they endorse organizations that help members of this community

unite. When it comes to the production of information, the quicker it is produced and the quicker

it is acknowledged by a name people know, the quicker it begins to become common knowledge.

Tyler Oakley sitting down and praising the internet for their continuous coverage of the queer

community shows us that acceptance for the queer community is happening because attention is

being given to the matter. Through three distinct paths, the platform and accessibility of the

internet have helped bring awareness to the topic of the queer identity. Although all online

coverage of the queer community is not positive, the positive message has become so widespread

that it outweighs any negative commentary, ultimately making the internet and social media

helpful to the queer identity.

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Works Cited

LGBT TRAVEL. Lesbian And Gay Travel : Delta Air Lines, Delta, 26 June 2015,
www.delta.com/content/www/en_US/traveling-with-us/where-we-
fly/destinations/lesbian-and-gay-travel.html. Accessed 23 Sept. 2017.

Castillo, Michelle. Brands Use Social Media to Back Same-Sex Marriage. CNBC, CNBC, 30
June 2015, www.cnbc.com/2015/06/26/brands-use-social-media-to-back-same-sex-
marriage.html. Accessed 23 Sept. 2017.

Nunez, Christina. Where Dating Apps Could Save Lives. National Geographic, National
Geographic Society, 15 May 2017, news.nationalgeographic.com/2017/05/grindr-health-
safety-security-lgbt-community-india/. Accessed 23 Sept. 2017.x

Wells, Jonathan. Tyler Oakley: how the internet revolutionised LGBT life. The Telegraph,
Telegraph Media Group, 12 Nov. 2015, www.telegraph.co.uk/men/thinking-man/tyler-
oakley-how-the-internet-revolutionised-lgbt-life/. Accessed 23 Sept. 2017.

Delta (@delta). Today we join our employees and customers in celebration of marriage
equality: http://delta.com/prideinflight #LoveWins. 26 June 2015. 8:21 AM. Tweet.
https://twitter.com/Delta/status/614453381067706370?ref_src=twsrc
%5Etfw&ref_url=http%3A%2F%2Fmashable.com%2F2015%2F06%2F26%2Fbrands-
gay-marriage-legalized%2F.
Accessed 23 Sept. 2017.

Taylor, Adam. 47 percent of the worlds population now use the Internet, study says. The
Washington Post, WP Company, 22 Nov. 2016,
www.washingtonpost.com/news/worldviews/wp/2016/11/22/47-percent-of-the-worlds-
population-now-use-the-internet-users-study-says/?utm_term=.686958a8d5b8. Accessed
23 Sept. 2017.

Gordon, Kyle. Topic: Social Media Statistics. Www.statista.com,

www.statista.com/topics/1164/social-networks/. Accessed 23 Sept. 2017.