To the editors:
I am writing to express my dismay at seeing the headline on the cover story of your recent edition [“The Angriest Queer,” August 17]. The use of the word “Queer” as a label for a gay man is a particularly annoying assault coming from a progressive publication.
Members of the gay and lesbian community have been working hard during the last two decades to combat the hate and intolerance of society. Your coverage of Daniel Sotomayor’s work begins with a word that is as demeaning to gay men and lesbians as words like “nigger,” “spic” or “wop” are to other minorities.
Although your article quotes the chant that was used by the ACT UP members, “We’re here, we’re queer, and we’re not going shopping,” it was a mistake to pull the word from that chant as a cheap attempt at a catchy title. Anyone glancing at the paper can easily misinterpret the headline as an attack. Our homophobic society doesn’t need support or justification from your publication.
I will discontinue any advertising in your paper until such time as a public apology and an explanation is made for your lack of sensitivity to the gay men and lesbians, their families and their friends that you’ve affronted.
Jeff Feathergill
Manager of Administration
Great Lakes Psychological Services