The point here isn't some measurement of "these are good books," --- it's that "these are good books by women". If you make the "by women" part false, then you are undermining the foundation of what makes these books important to the community it was written by and about. If you could set aside your political irons in this fire (unconscious or not) for a few minutes, I think you might see what I'm saying here.
Yes! I feel like this is what we've been trying and trying to get at and this clicked it.
I'm sort of amazed that the "GLBT literature as lit about and by GLBT people" thing slipped by everyone. It does seem like the LLAs are coming from a less academic background, so maybe that is why. And like you said, maybe just our desperation for something, anything with people like us in it.
I have a few small quibbles. I don't want to come across as an apologist for the LLF - I'm not at all involved with them and I'm aware that they've had issues in the past though I don't know that much about them.
For starters, they gave their redefined mission statement as "the Lambda Literary Awards are based principally on the LGBT content, the gender orientation/identity of the author, and the literary merit of the work."
That's not their mission statement. The new mission statement is here - it's the bit that's bolded.
Two, LLF would remind readers in the same press release that there are, and remain, awards that recognize non-LGBT authors who have written excellent and respectful LBGT content.
Um, they did actually.
However, if we really want to settle things, we need to go back a bit further, and retract any award given to an author who is not part of the community.
Do you actually think they should do that now, or is this one of the things that, if we could go back in time, they should have done? I ask because already there are people referencing your post and saying "well, I'll accept this but ONLY if they take back the awards they gave to straight, cis authors before." (Obviously they didn't read the third paragraph of your post.)
I do agree that the LLF could have handled it better... but saying that the "to-do" is their fault? Um no. The people who have put their transphobia, homophobia, racism, and sexism on display in the wake of the decision are responsible for their own decisions to do so. The LLF could have handled it in the very best way possible... and I'm sure some people still would have reacted the same way.
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Date: 1 Oct 2009 04:25 am (UTC)Yes! I feel like this is what we've been trying and trying to get at and this clicked it.
I'm sort of amazed that the "GLBT literature as lit about and by GLBT people" thing slipped by everyone. It does seem like the LLAs are coming from a less academic background, so maybe that is why. And like you said, maybe just our desperation for something, anything with people like us in it.
I have a few small quibbles. I don't want to come across as an apologist for the LLF - I'm not at all involved with them and I'm aware that they've had issues in the past though I don't know that much about them.
For starters, they gave their redefined mission statement as "the Lambda Literary Awards are based principally on the LGBT content, the gender orientation/identity of the author, and the literary merit of the work."
That's not their mission statement. The new mission statement is here - it's the bit that's bolded.
Two, LLF would remind readers in the same press release that there are, and remain, awards that recognize non-LGBT authors who have written excellent and respectful LBGT content.
Um, they did actually.
However, if we really want to settle things, we need to go back a bit further, and retract any award given to an author who is not part of the community.
Do you actually think they should do that now, or is this one of the things that, if we could go back in time, they should have done? I ask because already there are people referencing your post and saying "well, I'll accept this but ONLY if they take back the awards they gave to straight, cis authors before." (Obviously they didn't read the third paragraph of your post.)
I do agree that the LLF could have handled it better... but saying that the "to-do" is their fault? Um no. The people who have put their transphobia, homophobia, racism, and sexism on display in the wake of the decision are responsible for their own decisions to do so. The LLF could have handled it in the very best way possible... and I'm sure some people still would have reacted the same way.