![What it means to be queer](https://media.cnn.com/api/v1/images/stellar/prod/gettyimages-1233694883.jpg?c=16x9&q=w_800,c_fill)
What it means to be queer
CNN
Once used as a slur, queer has been reclaimed by many LGBTQ people who find it a fitting identifier. Here’s what it means to be the Q in LGBTQ.
For most of its early history, the word “queer” meant unusual or out of the ordinary. Then it was co-opted as a homophobic insult for much of the 20th century before people from LGBT communities reclaimed the term. Then, LGBTQ activists who identified as queer showed that they were proud to be different. LGBTQ activist groups like Queer Nation chanted “We’re here! We’re queer! Get used to it!” as a unifying call to action for all LGBTQ people. Now, queer is an identifier preferred by some LGBTQ people for its expansive and fluid nature, though others reject the word because of how it was used in the past. For many of those who embrace the term queer, identity isn’t fixed –– it evolves, and “queer” can encapsulate both sexuality and gender identity throughout a person’s life. “Queerness is cloudy by definition –– essentially, what is not the norm,” said Maya Satya Reddy, founder of the Queer Asian Social Club, a collective that advocates for improved visibility of LGBTQ Asian Americans in media. “I think queerness gave and still gives me a lot of space to flow between identities or what something means to me on that day.” Here’s what it means to be the Q in LGBTQ. Queer is an expansive term used by some LGBTQ people to describe their sexuality, gender identity or both. It may be preferred by those who find other terms like “gay” or “bisexual” too restrictive or narrow, as well as some people whose identities are fluid and evolving.
![](/newspic/picid-6252001-20240725164452.jpg)
A Justice Department watchdog has found that former Attorney General Bill Barr was personally involved in the decision to publicize an incident from the 2020 election – nine mail-in ballots for Donald Trump being discarded in a dumpster in Pennsylvania – that flamed the false narrative of widespread voter fraud.
![](/newspic/picid-6252001-20240725153537.jpg)
President Joe Biden is expected to be as forceful as he has ever been in urging Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to accept a ceasefire agreement when the two leaders meet privately at the White House Thursday afternoon, sources tell CNN, as US officials believe that a deal may be on the cusp.
![](/newspic/picid-6252001-20240725134304.jpg)
California’s Park Fire grows 7 times larger in hours as Oregon battles country’s biggest active fire
The largest active wildfire in the United States has scorched nearly 270,000 acres in eastern Oregon, as nearly 80 large active wildfires are burning in the US, including a California blaze that exploded in size overnight. Here’s the latest: