The History And Reclamation Of "Queer"

English poet and groundbreaking lesbian
author, Radclyffe Hall, who identified
as an "invert".

The word “queer” originally meant "strange", "odd", "peculiar", or "eccentric". We see "queer" being used in this way in the old northern English expression, "There's nowt so queer as folk", meaning, "There is nothing as strange as people." It wasn't until about the 1890s when "queer" was beginning to be used with a somewhat negative connotation. This word had started to imply sexual deviance, and referred to feminine men or men who would engage in same-sex relationships. In the early 20th century, people who had a sexual or gender identity that was considered abnormal, preferred to identify themselves as an "invert", referring to the reversal of gender roles in queer people at the time. By the mid 20th century, the "invert" identity was not being used as much, and people began using the word "homophile" to identify themselves. The term "homophile was popular among the queer people of the mid 1900s because it emphasized love instead of sex. In the 1960s and 1970s, the "homophile" identity became outdated in favor of "gay" as an umbrella term.
The late 1980s brought the HIV/AIDS epidemic in the United States, and through the tragedy of the outbreak, the label "queer" had begun to be reclaimed from its use as a derogatory term to a positive self-identifier, that can include everyone in the community. The LGBTQ+ rights group Queer Nation was one of the earliest examples of the reclaimed slur. Queer Nation anonymously published a flyer that was distributed at New York Pride in June 1990, titled "Queers Read This" which read in part,

“Ah, do we really have to use that word? It's trouble. Every gay person has his or her own take on it. For some it means strange and eccentric and kind of mysterious [...] And for others "queer" conjures up those awful memories of adolescent suffering [...] Well, yes, "gay" is great. It has its place. But when a lot of lesbians and gay men wake up in the morning we feel angry and disgusted, not gay. So we've chosen to call ourselves queer. Using "queer" is a way of reminding us how we are perceived by the rest of the world.”

Queer Nation demonstration; 1990s

Queer Nation also came up with the slogan "We're Here! We're Queer! Get Used To It!"
The Reclamation of "queer" was heightened by the rise of liberal conservatism within the gay community; during the early 90s, the queer movement rejected assimilationist ideals such as marriage, military inclusion, and adoption.
The queer movement was directly fuelled by radical action from groups like ACT UP, (AIDS Coalition To Unleash Power) as well as historically significant radical events like the Stonewall Riots. Many of the radical queer activists of the

Queer Nation material used in Houston, TX
in the 1990s.

time contrasted ideas of assimilation that many of the liberal conservative gays were striving for. Mattilda Bernstein Sycamore states in her book 'That's Revolting!: Queer Strategies for Resisting Assimilation', "The holy trinity of marriage, military service, and adoption [which had] become the central preoccupation of the gay movement, centered more on obtaining straight privilege than challenging power." highlighting the importance of being an individual powerful person within the queer community, and not conforming to what others are expecting. It was also noted that these "radical queers" are the ones who paved the way for assimilationists to express their opinions openly.
Today, "queer" is used in many ways: as an umbrella term, as a self-identifier, and as a community status. It is important to recognise that those who fought for the reclamation of slurs like "queer" received push-back from the queer community, as well as straight people, and it was only after years of struggle that the term "queer" is commonplace. The remembrance of those who fought for the rights of queers today is essential in continuing the fight for LGBTQ+ rights and global acceptance.