Thanks for starting this topic (or continuing - this thread is clearly too long for me to read all the posts but I've read everything since starry blanket's post).
I read the second article you linked by Sanchez (or perhaps Adan Sanchez, I don't know how Mexican last names work, my apologies, I don't know what the author's last name is).
I agree with your point and I'm grateful you made it, that coming out doesn't need to be a goal and isn't always good. It soothes me a little because it's a perspective I've never thought of that might have useful applications in my own life. You made the point that "coming out isn't always necessary" in the context that this thread might be going too far in representing white/cishet/male opinions; i.e., it's easier for white/cishet/males to come out, usually.
However, what do you think about these two points by Sanchez
- "As much as I feel empowered by my decision not to come out to my family, I acknowledge that part of it is rooted in fear. The fear of disownment and the loss of economic and emotional support hangs over this decision.
As much as I’d like to say it’s a radical act to challenge the whiteness of coming out, it is also rooted in a very primal and humane fear: the loss of one’s parents."
- "In truth, it is our whitewashed politics that have failed us. They have failed us in their capacity to describe our lived experiences and they have failed, again and again, to encompass our diverse identities."
I think there's a clear contradiction here, or at least tension, in their argument. They're on the one hand seeming to blame Mexican culture for their troubles in coming out (Sanchez directly says Mexican culture doesn't give enough space to explore queerness). They then go on to conclude that it is the whiteness of the politics that is failing to give capacity to describe queer and diverse identities. I understand on some level Sanchez is saying that whiteness is suffocating a necessary wider perspective on coming out. But isn't there some blame on Mexican culture too?
What I'm saying probably has uncomfortable implications for queer critical theory, whatever that is, I'm saying, wouldn't it be better for people to adopt the "White" perspective on coming out? I don't want it to be difficult to come out and I'm very sad that it's so hard for me. I'm not saying I'd like to be White, I'm just saying that I generally agree with the dominant White culture on issues of coming out and if this issue was totally white-washed for everyone, this would be good. I'm saying it's the responsibility of many minority cultures' to change because on balance, I think there are more historical examples of successful cultural changes coming from within than being imposed.
PS: I understand that Mexicans can be considered White, but from a general American perspective, there's definitely a distinction to be made between White European ancestry and White (also potentially European) ancestry from Mexico. The main point anyways is a difference between White American culture and Mexican culture.
