The Importance Of The LGBTQ Community

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A community according to Webster’s dictionary is “a social group of any size, where members reside in a specific locality, share government, and often have a common culture and historical heritage”. There are many different types of communities, but all have the same premise and that is to support one another within that community. LGBTQ communities let individuals talk openly about their feelings without being discriminated against. These communities have allowed an escape for its members from the stigma of the still largely ignorant society towards the LGBTQ community. Communities are a positive thing as long as animosity does not exist within these communities. Rancor within an LGBQT community diminishes the ability of that community to effectively provide for those who identify as LGBTQ and seek its support.
In Julie Serano’s book Whipping Girl: A Transsexual Woman on Sexism and the Scapegoating of Femininity she emphasizes that while the LGBTQ community is important and serves a purpose for its members, she also believes there is life outside such a community. Serano strongly states in her book that while the LGBTQ community serves a purpose, they would be more effective if they did not discriminate within their own community. According to Serano, discrimination within a community hurts all its members because not everyone feels accepted. In Andrew Holleran’s book Dancer from the Dance, he places a large emphasis on the need for community for those that identify as LGBTQ. In Dancer from the Dance, the community is portrayed as a place of safety and acceptance. Holleran illustrates through his characters that discrimination does not exist within their community, but he also paints the picture that there is little e...

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...port. Our identity is shaped from the influences on our lives. Nobody in our society asks for permission to belong to one gender or another. One of these influences can be the communities we belong to. Belonging to a LGBTQ community is a choice and not an obligation, whereas belonging to a cultural group is not necessarily something you have control of. The LGBTQ community can be an advantage to someone who is trying to find their identity. Being warmly welcomed into an LGBTQ community can help a person feel accepted and give them a sense of security. This feeling of acceptance could provide this person some self-esteem. The LGBTQ community can provide the feeling of safety to give that person confidence and a self-assured attitude. As long as the LGBQT community supports each other and does not show discrimination then community can be a positive effect.

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