War of Words

What I take away from the argument over RuPaul's use of language and the subsequent criticism about that, and the war of words over this issue is that some in the community seem to have lost the idea that you can hold and express a view that isn't inclusive while understanding the views of others that is inclusive, and that is unfair to be dismissive of the younger generation for their non-inclusive view simply because they are seen as younger and less experienced in the community.

The younger generation has the right to their view, the right to express it, and they should be heard and considered, and even embraced because it can and will produce change, change often needed over the pushback from some of the "established" folks. The only thing older folks get when they don't just listen and adapt to the younger generation is left and forgotten as a vestige of the community's past, written into history and not in the present.

The reality is that the vast majority of transpeople could not care less about RuPaul and the war of words. He's seen as what he is, an older icon of the gay-drag community and not a transgender person let alone representative of the transgender community, but is still seen by the media as one and invited to on shows to speak for them, who then turns around and denigrates and dismisses transwomen.

And for that Parker Molloy was, in my view, right to hold him and his show accountable for the transphobic use of the words and his frequent comments for transwomen to become more like drag queens and less like real women. That is not positive for the transgender community, some of whom praise him in spite of the use of slurs.

Despite what RuPaul says and does in public or on his show probably doesn't change what he does and says in private, so much of this war on words is only for ourselves and considered meaningless outside our community. That has been lost in the noise. To me we don't need to descalate the arugment but take a step back and take a breath to recognize we all have voices and we will have differences, and whether you agree or not with the different views.