By Tamara Robinson
I consider myself an ally to my LGBTQ brothers and sisters, and I am damn proud of it.
This can make me less proud of the labor movement I am so committed to due to its tendency to overlook the experiences of gay, lesbian, trans, queer, bi-sexual, gender questioning, and otherwise unconventionally-sexed individuals in the workplace in the fight for workers’ rights.
This tendency to overlook falls into an all-too-familiar pattern in which social movements fight for the empowerment of marginalized groups by waging a segmented battle for air time, resources, and legal wins. In this model, a “victory” carves out one minority population’s access to a right or institution from which they were previously excluded, with the hope that this will leave breadcrumbs so that the next group can take up the fight.
We’re often fighting for one aspect of ourselves at a time because that seems to be what the movement allows. It is as if the labor movement is shoved into one gigantic skyscraper, with each floor dedicated to one identity. Want women’s rights in the workplace? That’s the tenth floor. Want black gay workers? That’s on the seventeenth floor. Want trans workers? That’s up on twenty-seven. Want immigrant workers? Go down into the basement, because we don’t even know what to do with people we can’t organize! And every group is using the same resources, with often similar tactics, while trying to accomplish many of the same things — yet they are hardly communicating. If you happen to belong to several groups, you’re spending a lot of time waiting for the elevator and getting the runaround.
The introduction of concepts like intersectionality is a victory for those of us who passionately embrace every aspect of ourselves, our social identities, and our experiences. When I feel like barriers are being broken down between my race and my gender, and there is space for me to discuss what it feels like in the workplace as a Black American and a woman, I feel freer as a labor activist.
Yet, while I see more and more efforts to widen the umbrella of labor to include more workers, we are still lacking in substantive conversations about what is and is not working in terms of addressing overarching, intersectional issues in the workplace. We are still far from a labor movement that can reflect the voice of a black, working class, high femme, queer lesbian. If we are to remain relevant, we must continue to evolve toward such a vision.
I was overjoyed to learn that Murphy was offering an LGBTQ-focused course for the summer session. The class, “Queering Labor,” has given me and my classmates the opportunity to learn about an often-forgotten history of workers working, living, and fighting in the shadows. The course syllabus has reignited my belief in the movement, highlighting the endless ways in which our LGBTQ brothers and sisters are vital to the worker movement and providing fodder for rich conversation every Tuesday and Thursday evening. Together, we unravel the complex ideas, theories, and concepts in each week’s readings and think through the role of various institutions, social norms, concepts, and ideologies in shaping the experience of not only LGBTQ workers, but all workers. We have learned that there is no one group of workers that is not subject to the whims of western capitalism in and outside of the workplace; the key players are all the same.
We are all workers, and as we support and critique the efforts for or against legislation, policies, political candidates, and much, much more, we should be ensuring that every “type” of worker feels safe, supported, and included in the labor movement. I can be no less black than I am a woman; I should be allowed to carry my full identity and experiences into every room I enter, including the union hall — as should every other worker. Our movement could be so much richer and more impactful.
I support my brothers and sisters in pursuit of equality everywhere and in every nook and cranny of the social fabric, whether it be marriage equality, income equality, education equality, or what have you. I ask that we also consider what is being done to ensure equality in our movements; from my perspective, #movementequality is the key to making us unstoppable.
*The course, Queering Labor is offered on Tuesday and Thursday nights from 6:15 pm to 8:45pm on the 19th Floor (Rm 1901) by Colin P. Ashley, PhD Candidate in Sociology at the CUNY Graduate Center.
Tamara Robinson is an MA candidate in Labor Studies at the Murphy Institute.
