Why We Love Maine, pg. 2
Saturday, November 14, 2009
Why We Love Maine
This November 3, Mainers who are equality-minded had a major blow. Marriage Equality was voted down. While I'm not strongly for the institution of marriage, I do see it as a piece of a puzzle that leads to a fuller-equality for LGBTQ citizens in the United States.
What really got deep into my heart was seeing my fellow queers completely distraught--and to feel like the Proponents of Yes on 1 were more than just moralist, more than just fundamentalist, and more than just "protecting the children." The language they were using against my peers and I was more than hurtful. It was violent.
The work I do is all about language, and all about creating a visual and visceral culture... Does this make sense? That which we surround ourselves with (i.e. the media) is consistent with how we feel as whole... So having the radio waves, television screens, and print media full of hateful, violent language and imagery is damaging to us. Especially those of us that this hateful media is aimed at.
In the weeks following the Yes on 1 Win, out-of-staters started blasting the online and print communities with the concept of "boycotting Maine." Boycott Maine? Really? So, you're going to hurt our economy because approximately 290,000 Mainers don't like the idea of LGBTQ folks gettin' married?
Whether this "boycott" has any staying power or not, I posed the question to my friends and family about what they love about Maine, as a way to take what has become MORE hateful language and turn it on its head. I received 20 answers in an hour, and am looking to solicit more.
I've compiled the answers, and am starting to illustrate them in the hopes that it will inspire those of us fighting the good fight to remember why we love Maine, despite this emotional and political set-back. I'll be posting the finished drawings on this blog, and will have them available as a book once I finish a healthy amount of them.
So, what do YOU love about Maine?
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