There definitely always does seem to be this need to talk about the supposed "identity-less" queer youth in the same way that many claim gay male culture is "dead." Or the "post-gay" culture of well moneyed, well careered, well privileged young gay men who don't see a need for queer community anymore. I think in those cases, it's once more important to go beyond the most mainstream and media-visible people within the queer population, because those are frequently the ones who are completely out of touch with the struggles of many other queer youths (or many other queer folks for that matter). They think that because they are "successful" (in the mainstream sense of the word) that everyone must be in the same way, that their reality frames all realities, that everyone has the same equality they have. The see equality as the right to get married and be a good capitalist.

As Halperin points out, that isn't the case at all as far as the "death" of gay culture among young gay men (or young queers in general, for that matter).

Again, same can be said for all queer culture, although these days it seems that gay male challenges to standards of masculinity seem more successful (as far as straight-identified society beginning to view certain aspects of "femininity" as "acceptable" for men) than the challenges to the norm by queer women or genderqueer folks. Where in the past, women challenging gender norms were slightly more acceptable than challenges to the standard of masculinity, today that seems to have changed. Probably helped along by the images portrayed by shows like The Real Housewives of XYZ that promotes that idea that women shouldn't try to be independent and self-sufficient in order to be "empowered." In its own way its promoting a hyperfeminine standard of dependence on men as somehow empowering, under the feigned assumption that women have already achieved "equality" and so can go back to "chic" dependency that seems more unbreakable within the mainstream today than it was in the 90s.

So yes, it is important, I think, to look at what queer culture's challenges to masculine/feminine standards enables people to do. And that may be precisely why so many people want to declare certain aspects of queer culture (or queer community, queer politics and queer youth) as "dead," or the culture of young queers as non-challenging, normative and apolitical when there is much evidence pointing to the contrary. These challenges that still continue to exist do enable many to do many things that mainstream straight-identified culture does not. To gain access to freedoms that are restricted elsewhere. They claim that our culture is "dead" simply because it continues to be a threat to normative culture and its oppressive standards.

One of the things I've noticed in the past 10 years is how corporate pride has become.

Ten years ago, we had small tables with flyers in front of the state capitol. We marched, we protested, we knew the issues. We were prepared to call the police if we got jumped by the anti-glbt protesters.

Now, it was pride sponsored by Bud Light, with booths from Subaru, Shaw's grocery stores, Blue Cross Blue Shield, some other large corporations, and six booths selling rainbow everything that was made in China. Instead of walking home with an armful of pamphlets and voter info, I could walk home with a shopping bag full of promotional freebies.

I kid you not-- on my way to pride this year, I passed a chain restaurant by the Providence Place Mall. Their staff was trying to figure out how to hang up a rainbow flag, and were actually asking each other which way the flag was supposed to hang (red on top? horizontal or vertical)? Yes it is nice that they were hanging the pride flag for pride. But it was to attract business.

I still think the events are relevant because there is still so much work to do and I know they do help people connect. I see pride events popping up in new communities all over the nation, especially in the south, and I am grateful for that. Pride is often a time for people who have no connection to the community to come out and get the visual reinforcement that no, you are not alone, and yes, there are a lot more of us that people think. I just wish for a little more "here's a list of all the candidates who are voting against gay marriage" versus "here's a commemorative rainbow (insert product here)."

And don't get me started on the news media that choose to focus on nothing but the more fringe members of the community.

I had an upside down rainbow flag bumper sticker for years. Till I sold the car.