In 2010 ...
• I resolve not to forget where I came from and hope that the memory will not stop me from going where I want. I will remember that the New Year will be that of construction. I won't second-guess myself so much; I will eat like a champion. I will Internet less, human contact more.
• My personal goal is to create more life-affirming art, to lose 30 pounds (one does not need to be the biggest bear in the world), to live more honestly, less in my head, trust myself, to be as couture, colorful, and layered as my drawings and to construct a solid working class discourse that allows for autonomous voices to emerge from a discourse that previously talked down to those people.
• My wish is that the queer community would stop fighting itself and focus on combating heteronormativity and hate. I would love to see compassion, creativity and a strong sense of community flourish in place of blind consumption and unrestrained capitalism. As Alberta moves to the right LGBTQ people must get involved and vote. It would be nice to have a meaningful relationship that lasts more than three months.
• I want more images of queers lying down on the street to resist tanks in the Pride parade, more of the Samarasekera Response Team, more radical queer politics (less talk of gay marriage), more inventive use of public space (less retreat from it) and more civic-mindedness (less individualism). I want empowered promiscuity, a chance to fuck my enemies, better time management skills, more time spent outside, Bill 44 to be repealed, gender reassignment surgery funding to be reinstated, to get elected, to tease an aerie-faerie aristocratic chitter-chatter out of the bourgeoisie corporate discourse of contemporary consumer culture, to be very busy, to focus focus focus on my work, to keep standing, walking and then running (stopping only to help and breathe), to fully embrace my journey, continue to be proactive in my life and the greater queer community, to affect and seek positive change, to learn how to be more sexually expressive, liberal and how to better communicate, to make some noise, join a parade, and cause some tumult for a good cause, to explore and discover why we need art, why we continue to destroy ourselves (and hug everyone who understands), to have more passionate, engaging and fun sex with my spouse, to embrace a more holistic view of health and get back into cooking and church. I want a new underground / above ground home for queer kids (of all ages) to dance to mid '90s hip-hop, R&B and Lady Gaga. I want another year as good as 2009 was. I want to heal.
• I hope to see more public displays of dissent and outrage in response to terrible decisions and policies in Alberta. The Crash has already happened in many places around the world, I hope next year The Crash happens here and then we'll all have to start community gardens and learn how to can. One can only hope, and work towards educating the populace on why they need to be angry and afraid of Section 9 of Bill 44. I love the way Edmonton's queer community has galvanized this past year, my sincere hope for 2010 is that we build on this momentum—Queer Summit anyone? I hope love becomes a greater part in people's lives, that we learn to not only love each other more, but ourselves as well. I hope for the return of that certain someone that stole my heart from Toronto—he had to run for his life from his homeland because of his lifestyle. I hope that the lives of queers living in developing countries with homophobic policies are made significantly better in 2010. (I don't live there and can't know what "better" would look like, so that's all I'll say). I hope we continue to infuse queer mainstream with the diverse queer voices of different cultures around the world, to be proud of our heritages and to let our histories empower our voices. I hope my parents will hear about their son doing something queer and wonderful and will come to show their support. I hope my father will accept me when I confront him about my eight-year secret of being gay. I hope to be a part of a parent support group for school aged children that have gay/lesbian parents and are subjected to bullying. I hope people become kinder and less fearful and that '80s techno pop makes a comeback. I hope we survive the bureaucratic nonsense of the Australian immigration department. I hope 2010 will bring authentic healing to our community, that we'll be good to each other, supportive of each other and become more of who we are truly meant to be. I hope I feel less hopeless a year from now than I do today—pleasant surprises would be welcome. I feel ready to begin.
The above is a collection of queer resolutions, wants, goals, wishes and hopes for the coming year from a multitude of queer voices. V
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