This reflection is not against any non-heterosexual candidacy for any public office, quite the opposite. I also don't want to criticize those who have been showing off in their electoral campaigns, nor even discourage voters/supporters of drag queens, transvestites and gay, bisexual or lesbian activists, racing across Brazil in search of votes.
"I think that, if it is a case of coming out of the closet to win the elections, it must be understood that no one is just a fagot, a lock or a dyke, which is more or less how, in the end, a large part of the population will look at these candidates and candidates called “from our community”.
People in search of votes, in addition to their affective-sexual practices and desires, also have a history of politicization or depoliticization, of involvement or apathy with different social movements, of political approximations and partnerships or of inexperience and naivety in the field of dispute over votes. positions of power. They don't just have sex, gender and sexuality; it has a political party, ideology, religion, color, social class, political formation, practices and discourses of different orders, diffuse interests and a history.
If it is true that being a fag in itself does not disqualify anyone from any public office, it is also equally true that it does not. The same applies to the category of woman, black, poor, disabled, intellectual, etc. If it were the other way around, the black president of the USA and our first female president would have done what really needs to be done for black people and women to have a better quality of life, whether there or here.
Furthermore, there is an aggravating factor. The time has come for us to understand that our democracy with regard to councilor elections is guided by the electoral coefficient. Thus, the vacancy in the council chamber is not decided by the number of votes from each candidate separately, but by the number of votes from the party or coalition. We need to think, once and for all, collectively. If your candidate receives good votes, but his party does not reach the necessary vote share, he will not win. That is, the party project is worth more than the good intentions of each of its preferred candidates.
So, before valuing whether or not your candidate is LGBT, find out more information to find out who he is involved with. It's not enough to trust him or her, you have to believe that his or her group is the best, and, for that, it's good to know the history of the politicians in the party in which he or she is affiliated and also those other parties that make up his or her coalition. See if you won't vote for a queer and elect a homophobe! And, for this, it is not enough to listen to the speeches during this electoral period. It is necessary to check the votes already given or denied by the party at state and federal levels in relation to initiatives that you consider important.
Don't fall into the mistaken identity discourse that necessarily "we have to elect LGBTs to have more rights". Or have you already forgotten the prejudiced testimonies of the late deputy Clodovil? Or do you have difficulty understanding that the little we achieved was through the struggle of the social movement for sexual diversity and the work of, for example, many heterosexual politicians?
We know that everyone has the right to contest elections, and, of course, this needs to be guaranteed. It is also evident that gender and sexuality, as well as other differences, construct our practice and our struggle, mark our interests and strengthen part of our solidarity and notion of community. Therefore, they cannot be disregarded. The important issue here is not to overvalue this or that difference to the point of not seeing the danger ahead, of not realizing the implications surrounding your vote.
Has anyone ever wondered why so many political parties that are already in power don't mind having openly fagot candidates on their platforms, but don't approve the laws we need?
We are in difficult times, and if we don't open our eyes, we will feel represented when in fact we are fueling perverse processes of violence against ourselves and other "minority" groups. In this sense, please LGBTs, don't necessarily vote for LGBTs. First, analyze the parties committed to our fight and value them. The government project is worth more than the good intentions of many queer candidates.
*Tiago Duque is a sociologist and has experience as an educator in different areas, from teacher training to street social education. Milita no Identidade – Fight for Sexual Diversity Group. He likes to think and act with those who want to do something new, in search of another possible world.
