Over the Rainbow? Why Queer Beer Is Important

I drink many beers from many breweries and I haven’t a clue to their sex, let alone whether they’re gay, bi, straight, whatever. I don’t research and honestly that is someone’s personal business that I really don’t care about. Your business I’m fine, my business I’m fine. Bottom line is the product, like other food or beverage endeavors, quality stands alone. I’d bet most here probably haven’t a clue to who brews their favorite beers.

 

I get where you’re coming from with this. I think what you’re describing is how things ought to be, where everyone has equal opportunity, equal opportunity to both develop the wealth to start a brewery and to just be themselves and not have to worry about anything in the process. Unfortunately, the lgbtq+ community hits barriers with both. They have faced various forms of economic oppression over the years and been told again and again that they couldn’t be themselves in the private business world. They have/had to hide who they are, or who they loved if they wanted any chance at turning a profit. It’s only been very recently, and ever so slightly, that folks in the lgbtq+ community can start being themselves without fear of being harmed. That needs to be highlighted and celebrated if equality for all is to be achieved. So, when it’s highlighted and/or celebrated, the folks popping up who say “who cares” are missing the point. If you give a shit about the community or know any of its history then you don’t say “who cares.” If you believe in equity and want to live in a world where this shit doesn’t matter, then you should be saying “this stuff shouldn’t matter, but it does, so I’m gonna take it seriously for a minute, maybe even help out if I can.”

 

I don’t know who brews my beers, and it’s anyone’s right to follow their dreams. I don’t ask anyone’s business, and so how would I know who they were in the first place? To say I don’t care isn’t right , but I don’t if that makes sense. Your right there’s the way things are and the way things should be.

 

Creating a society where gay people can live their lives openly like any other member of society, without negative attention, is the real job for all of us. In places where that has been largely achieved I don’t buy your premise that they need special help from you to be successful and would imagine they’d find your statement that they would be unable to achieve without being “highlighted and/or celebrated” to be deeply offensive.

I think you mean well but your ideas of what “help” you can offer are clumsy. Gay people, just like everyone else, would like to be open about who they are but then excel at their job and then be judged by the results of it. They want to be the talented brewmaster who so happens to be gay rather than a gay brewmaster

This brewer being a fine example of what I’m talking about:

https://www.breweriesinpa.com/brewery-review-mellow-mink-brewing-mechanicsburg/

 

Please allow me to clarify....I’m not saying individual brewers in the lgbtq+ community need our help to be successful and that they can’t stand on their own two feet. I’m saying that the lgbtq+ community as a whole needs the help of people who aren’t members of the community, such as me and, I assume, you (apologies if I assume wrong). Highlighting and discussing the issues this article touched upon is away to support said community. Dismissing it as playing politics is a way to ignore, if not outright harm, said community.

 

I’m not much of a social warrior, I do good to keep my life in good order, but I’d say we’ve come a long way since the 1960s. Back then you called someone Queer you’d have to fight, now it’s cool which I find strange, but what do I know.

 

That’s the thing mate, it’s not enough to keep your own life in good order. It would be awesome if that’s all there were to it, and I hope we get to that world. But we’re not there yet. Do you think a murder-2 charge and would’ve been brought against chauvin if people didn’t protest? People recognize that they need to give a shit about those they’ve never met and, most importantly, they need to take a little action if they want to see those folks get an equal shot in life too. Same applies here. I’m not in the lgbtq+ community, but I recognize that they aren’t getting a fair shake at this life. It’s not about being a social justice warrior, it’s about recognizing that we are dependent on one another, no matter how much we wish we weren’t.

 

Same sex couples are among the most economically successful demographics in the country.

 

This conversation at this point has nothing to do with beer.

Has BA become another political message board? I surely hope not.

And don’t call me Sherly.

 

I said lgbtq+ community. Not gay community. Also, there is another way that scholars have read the conclusion that gay people are among the most economically successful, which is that economic security acts as a safety blanket to come out as gay. It’s worth thinking a bit about that argument, in my opinion.

 

Attempting a joke, but failing on the spelling, Shirley.

 

Spelling was never my strength. I’m an engineer, good with numbers, not letters.

 

That's a fair point about who comes out and who doesn't. Of course, if you're not out then how are you being discriminated against?

To me, the mashing of any group that has a conceivable grievance together and pretending they all suffer the same kind of oppression is silly and useless. The absence of visible queer figures in the brewing industry is likely influenced much more.by the social/cultural attitude toward and around beer than it is to some sort of lack of access to capital. And that obviously leaves lots of room for discussion and consideration about what aspects of beer culture might be disincentives to queer people participating openly.

 

But it’s fair to say that some of those couples’ economic situation depends on the whims of the 6 conservatives on the Supreme Court. Michigan, as one example, has two laws on its books that can have a drastic impact: 1. the state constitution bars marriage (or its equivalent) between same-sex couples, 2. most public employers are barred from extending benefits to unmarried partners. If Obergefell gets overturned, poof there goes health insurance for a lot of people. Now we can go back to the olden (2013) days of “I’m terribly sorry that you’re in the middle of cancer treatments, but unfortunately we can’t continue because you’re no longer insured.” Only, you know, written as two pages of legalese.

Suddenly, the landlord that doesn’t like renting to gays can legally evict them (in some states) for being a cohabiting unmarried couple. And you better make sure that you’ve got the paperwork to legally support any claims of joint property ownership, power of attorney, medical disclosure, etc. Cuz if marriage goes away, then so do a lot of things that heterosexual spouses take for granted.

Plus, you make this claim (source?) about “same-sex couples” but that leaves out a whole swath of the LGBTQI community. Do unmarried trans individuals have the same economic opportunities as unmarried heterosexuals? I hope you know that I value your contributions across BA, Spidey, but it seems like you’re cherry-picking facts here and focusing in on a narrow segment of the community.

 

I feel bad “picking” on you in back-to-back posts but isn’t feeling that it’s unsafe to be Out a form of discrimination?

 

For some breweries it is. For others, it’s a chance to use their status and notoriety to highlight worthy charities. If you spend enough time with folks working or volunteering in the community, you can get a sense for who actually cares and who’s just trying to make a quick buck. There’s a lot of other ways breweries show support, aside from special beers/cans/labels (event sponsorship, donations of product or space, fundraisers, etc.). It might seem like a gimmick or ploy to you, but seeing more representation is almost always welcome. It is frustrating to see places overstate their efforts, but what can you do?

 

Please research suicide rates in the LGBTQ community, consider the rising influence of intolerant evangelical christians, and TRY to understand why so many, particularly young members of the community, don't feel safe coming out. Not discriminated against?

 

This community has become so riddled with groupthink and toxicity. Another place fallen victim to politics.

Why can't we just focus on beer?

It's a damn shame.

 

I swear, this is my last post on this topic (tonight, at least). Access to capital shouldn't be totally discounted. I'm not going to claim that it's a primary factor, but it is a factor. A few years ago, some married friends of ours were thinking of opening a tiki bar (not exactly the same as a brewery but in the ballpark). The most frequent advice they got from friends in finance was "If you have to go the loan route, get a straight partner and make him the face of the business as you secure financing. Otherwise, the banks are gonna think it's a gay bar and they'll make you jump through hoops until they find a reason to reject it."

 

I was there Saturday, as well as Friday (different releases added each day, even Sunday). On Saturday, they brought back their barleywine Anniversary Blend #2. On Sunday, they tapped collaborations with cocktail bar Drastic Measures. I'll go back for those.