This ‘cute and pronounceable’ attempt at an LGBT+ alternative seriously backfired after it dropped ‘gay’ and added ‘ally’
Stock image (Envato Elements)
A Twitter user decided to rewrite the LGBT+ acronym, and it’s fair to say that it did not go down well.
Unicorn March unveiled their new acronym yesterday (August 5) and explained that they wanted a “pronounceable” version, coming up with QTIPAL+.
Pronounced cutie pal, the first three letters stand stands for queer or questioning, transgender and intersex.
The P represents polyamorous/bisexual/pansexual, the A ace/aro/agender/ally, and the L lesbian/gay. The plus stands for “all others who need it”.
LGBT+ people roundly criticised the QTIPAL+ acronym on Twitter, questioning why ‘polyamorous’ and ‘ally’ made the cut while ‘gay’ and ‘bisexual’ didn’t.
The new acronym was quickly pilloried by queer people, with many pointing out glaring flaws and omissions.
“I just feel like ‘rearranging the acronym because I want something cute and fluffy to say’ is maybe not be a great reason to do this,” one wrote.
“We got people dying and behind denied rights and you… want a pleasant sounding acronym.”
Numerous people questioned why “polyamorous” was part of the acronym when many cisgender and heterosexual people are polyamorous, while others pointed out that allies are not part of the LGBT+ community.
last thing i need is a white dude in a vest at a party to say hes a "cutie-pal" because he has a wife AND a girlfriend https://t.co/WecQBvbnjY
— post death stranding depression ??? (@ccakeyy) August 6, 2020
the grouping of terms is so strange lmao, like poly goes with bi and pan? huh? and allies are a sexuality too now? ? am I missing something? pic.twitter.com/5u5gD3AADP— ?Mary? (@kobayashimaruu) August 5, 2020
can we stop saying allies are apart of the lgbt community. like thank you for supporting us but it’s also common sense to support us bc we’re humans who deserve the same rights as anybody else. you don’t get a badge of honor for it ? https://t.co/XuTbX6q8e7— sky (@filtergrassi) August 6, 2020
Many pointed out that grouping bisexual and pansexual people with polyamory perpetuates harmful stereotypes about people who are attracted to more than one gender.
why are bi and pan people grouped with polyamorus https://t.co/kDoFHm1d7F— Mr. Fart (@SerbiaEpic) August 6, 2020
Equating bisexuality and polyamory ❌❌ that’s what we want to avoid remember https://t.co/YX6Tfbu0kk
— matilda (@tillipepper) August 5, 2020
Others pointed out that bisexuality and pansexuality are not the same – and lumping them into the same category only serves to erase both.
Also for many bi and pan aren't the same thing. You can say pan is a subcategory of bi because of its differences but nonetheless they're different.
And correct me if I'm wrong but I'm pretty sure gay men don't feel represented by the L for lesbian. That's why LGBT has both L & G— Niklas ??? (@NiklasUniverse) August 5, 2020
Then, there were those who simply reacted in horror.
bleaching my eyes out after seeing this https://t.co/X5TMuHMBKQ— silas (@hyperhearted) August 6, 2020
Im commiting cold murder if some "cishet ally" calls me a cutie pal on the street https://t.co/Aoi77TRfAR— ramona (@Clodthegod) August 6, 2020
these attempts at rebranding the LGBT community into some toothless, infantilized version of itself so we can be palatable and inclusive to straight people is misguided at best and outright insulting at worst https://t.co/QF0kXZXKnr— ADRI ?️?? (@AdriOfTheDead) August 5, 2020
// undertones of biphobia/lesbophobia/homophobia/all of it
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this is perhaps one of the worst takes I've seen in 2020 https://t.co/10rrxAD7t2— yurika ♡ STEGO DAY ????✨ (@chkayous) August 5, 2020
LGBT+ people hit out at ‘infantilising’ new acronym.
Twitter user Unicorn March was lambasted by countless LGBT+ people who firmly disavowed the new “cutie-pal” acronym.
“Hey I usually love what you have to say but I think that unilaterally reorganising the anagram and making changes like lumping bi/pan/polyam together is not the rad one you think it is,” one person replied.
Another wrote: “Infantilising, in my opinion. Would not want someone to call me this and I’m sure a lot of people can agree. I’m a gay person not a cutie.”
Meanwhile, somebody else wrote: “I’m not some mystical unicorn I’m just a normal person that happens to be queer. Also not fond of lumping bi/pan/poly and aro/ace/agender together when they’re all completely different identities.”
Somebody else summed up the general thoughts of the internet succinctly.
“It’s LGBTQ and it will stay that way please stop trying to incorporate allies into the community because they aren’t. Allies are straight.”
So, it looks like LGBT+ won’t be going anywhere anytime soon.
