Ellen, An Imperfect Lesbian Icon: A Deep Dive

Comments · 837

• MA

  @madonna816 · 2 years ago

  As a queer elder, this is spot on. The info & the assessments. She’s grown into a deeply problematic person, but the impact she had cannot be understated…which is why her crap is so bloody disappointing.

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• JO

  @JoyNelsonSings · 2 years ago

  This definitely speaks to the idea that we can be grateful for one action or stance a person takes without considering them a role model.

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• YO

  @YourQueerGreatAuntie · 2 years ago

  Watching the broadcast of &quot;The Puppy Episode&quot; was the moment I realised I was (and still am!) a lesbian. I was in a relationship with a man at the time, I was 20, had assumed I was bisexual before then. I&apos;m in Ireland, and in my 47 years, the following changes have happened:<br>Abortion was criminalised<br>Divorce was legalised<br>Condoms became available for purchase without prescription and for under-18s<br>Homosexuality was decriminalised<br>Same-sex marriage was legalised<br>Trans self-ID was legalised<br>Abortion was decriminalised<br>All but the first in that list happened when I was a teen or older, and politically aware and active. My parents are still alive (were among the first to legally divorce in Ireland!), and have welcomed each of these changes with joy and optimism. I&apos;m still waiting for disability rights, but we&apos;re working on it!

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• NO

  @normaowens7340 · 2 years ago

  The true gay icons are people like you and your wife! Everyday people who live your lives day to day! You deal with the haters while living your lives! I am not gay, but I see the real heroes! Those of you who deal with hate while raising your families, showing others that love is love , and like the rest of us, putting one foot in front of the other!

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• NY

  @NymphaeaDreams · 2 years ago

  I&apos;m an older millennial and I remember my family watching the sitcom UP UNTIL Ellen&apos;s character came out and then my parents banned the show in the family house. I was very young so I didn&apos;t understand what coming out, or even what a lesbian is. But it did bring enough attention to the topic for me to understand in my teens that &quot;I will not tell my parents I am bi, like women, and date women&quot;. And I never did tell them. But all my siblings know and always supported it.

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• JE

  @jerrihadding2534 · 2 years ago

  As a naive 19 year old, I married an extraordinarily good man in March 1969. &nbsp;In June 1969 the Stonewall Riots occurred. &nbsp;Within months after, I wandered out to my husband with a finger marking my place in the book “Lesbian Women” and announced with wonder “I’m a Lesbian!” &nbsp;To which my husband replied, NO joke or exaggeration, “That’s nice dear.” &nbsp;Both of us were clueless! &nbsp;And I am not Lesbian, I am bisexual as I discovered and understood in the following years.

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• RE

  @reminded · 2 years ago

  I’m 33, bisexual, and nonbinary. Sometimes I marvel at how far we’ve come. It breaks my heart to hear younger queer people doubt they’ll make it to their mid-30s, but it also makes me determined to stick around long enough to be that older queer in people’s lives.

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• MX

  @MxFirebirdsChild · 2 years ago (edited)

  Ellen’s coming out did open the door for more gay actors and characters on TV. I was a young teen when “The Puppy Episode” came out; I don’t remember watching it, but I did watch her interview on the Oprah Show. It wasn’t until later that the impact of Ellen’s interview hit me. I had to come to terms with my own queerness and figure out that it wasn’t just a ‘white people thing’, first. Folks like Queen Latifah, Da Brat, and Wanda Sykes were infinitely more impactful to me as a Black baby queer…but Ellen did help get the ball rolling.

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• AN

  @andrewmondt771 · 2 years ago

  I&apos;ve never lost it watching a youtube episode until today. I can not tel you how impactful the mention of older queer folk was. I&apos;m a 56 year old gay man. That really isn&apos;t that terribly old. &nbsp;Us &quot;&quot;elder&quot; gay men have survived the &nbsp;HIV/AIDS crisis at its worst, delt with a much more homophobic world yet have survived and often thrived. however we are also invisible. Agism in the queer media is rampant. Referring to a man in his late thirties as &quot;daddy&quot; is an example. As a single person I may as well be made of glass. I have great friends and am active in the community. It can suck being the only single person in the room when everybody around you is coupled. The older queers have so much to offer the young follk. We just aren&apos;t often seen. I&apos;d love to see what your thoughts are if/when you do a deep dive into aging while being LGBT+. In fact you can feel free to ask me &nbsp;about it. You rock and thanks!

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• CA

  @castaway2850 · 2 years ago

  i appreciate the nuance of this video. we can acknowledge all the good ellen has done for the queer community while also acknowledging that she’s not the most wonderful person.

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• JU

  @judebrown4103 · 2 years ago (edited)

  Gay boomer here. Turn sixty-six this year, came out in the early eighties, been with my civil partner/wife forty-one years. Loved Ellen for coming out in the Puppy episode the way she did, had no idea of the things she&apos;s done recently, very sad to hear it. 🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️

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• SH

  @sh-qd4hf · 2 years ago

  Ellen&apos;s story also reminds me of Roseanne. That show meant a lot to me as a fat, low income, baby queer. They had multiple episodes and characters referencing gay characters in (sure, sometimes messy, but) supportive ways. Seeing Roseanne Barr herself drink the right wing juice crushed me.

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