23 Responses

  1. Trix
    Trix at |

    I definitely think m/m can help people be more empathetic…this is a beautifully argued post!

    Reply
  2. Tanja
    Tanja at |

    Thank you for your post, Kaje. It touched me deeply. Even in the liberal country where I live there are still incidents concerning attacks on gay couples. We will have to keep fighting for equal right and the M/M community will help accomplish that. I am glad to be a part of that community.

    Reply
  3. dee
    dee at |

    Thanks for sharing your insights. A very well developed posting. Sadly, I doubt that people who could profit from learning or reading out of their comfort zone to understand things they don’t understand (yet) will do so.

    Reply
  4. 16forward
    16forward at |

    This is a beautiful post! Thank you for saying what I’ve thought for so long.

    Reply
  5. Purple Reader
    Purple Reader at |

    Thanks, your post indeed got me thinking :-). I agree whole heartedly. So much unnecessary suffering and loss, even unseen – as you’ve said, and I’d like to add to that. Not everyone will see the links, and it’s hard to explain, but I see a causal link from societal repression to the gay culture being embedded with feelings of victimization, guilt, and secrecy, to that directly resulting in and being played out like it did with the burst of sexual explorations and spread of AIDS, as well as many not immediately doing something about it, in the 70s and 80s. And that victim/secrecy mindset still has wide implications today in the gay culture. Ironically, even tho I’m a gay man who came out later, I also find that phenomena can sometimes be an easy out and trope used by authors to engender sympathy, without exploring the issues with more depth. But ah, when the story is told well, it can indeed open minds.

    Reply
    1. Purple Reader
      Purple Reader at |

      Since that was a bit long, I thought I’d ask this in separate comment: What are the one or few key things you do to avoid the trap of tropes and get beyond them?

      Reply
  6. ErrynB
    ErrynB at |

    I am newer to m/m but have really enjoyed it. Please, keep writing. Keep being a great advocate. I live in Canada and know how lucky I am, but we still have a long way to go.

    Reply
  7. H.B.
    H.B. at |

    Wonderful post and eloquently put. I started off reading yaoi manga and loved it. But when i got into m/m fiction it just opened up my mind to the possibilities and definitely made me realize just how real these stories/situations could or does mimic real life. I love that authors are advocating issues or just giving those who need reassurance that its alright to be who you are and live a fulfilling life.

    Reply
    1. Kaje
      Kaje at |

      I’m glad the fun of yaoi also led you to us.

      Reply
  8. ELF
    ELF at |

    My hubby keeps asking me why I am so fascinated by the m/m genre…and it’s tough for me to pinpoint, but I think part of it is seeing the struggles experienced by the characters and seeing that (hopefully) there is light at the end of the tunnel for them. I am often dismayed by the truth behind so many of the stories but uplifted by the fictional solutions and hopeful that some folks truly get their HEA. I appreciate you and the other great authors who both expose some of the inequities and inspire us to strive for a better world and I hope that you continue to share your voice with all of us.

    Reply
  9. pepón
    pepón at |
    Reply
  10. waxapplelover
    waxapplelover at |

    Beautiful post. No one who reads the recent news about what is happening to gay men in Chechnya can think that the persecution and the intolerance is at an end.

    Reply

Please take a minute to leave a comment it is so appreciated !