~My Particular Brand of Insanity~

I mean where else could the gay kid with a dad like Burt come out and be told that he’s still just as loved, and be supported unconditionally by said father every moment afterwards? How many shows are there like that now?

Where else could the hot cheerleaders make out and it’s not just queer bait or fan service? Where there’s actually a genuine, emotional, heart felt story surrounding it? How many shows do you know like that?

Part of Glee’s whole thing was subverting stereotypes. Yes, you’ve got the sassy black girl, the gay who loves fashion, the bitchy cheerleader, the ditzy blonde, the asshole jock. But those characters are so much more than that. Even though they fell into said stereotypes at times, I think the show spent much more time showing the characters behind the clichés 

Mercedes could be vulnerable, and soft, and loving. She didn’t always have to be the Strong Black Woman that didn’t need no man

Kurt could be serious, and tough, and masculine. He didn’t always have to be the sassy gbf

Quinn could be selfless, Brittany could be smart, Puck could be kind.

And right out of the gate, the cast of characters was so diverse. The only main characters that actually fit the bill of a cis, straight, white, able bodied male were Will and Finn. Sam and Ryder were both dyslexic. I guess you could count Mason later on, but even he was on the Cheerios, which I’d argue was a good way to subvert the typical image of masculinity 

For six years, we got to meet and fall in love with multiple gay, lesbian, trans, and bi characters. Characters that were black, Asian, Latina, and mixed race. Characters that were Jewish and atheist, as well as several denominations of Christian. Characters with anxiety, OCD, depression, dyslexia, down syndrome, bulimia, paraplegia. And most of the characters can check off multiple boxes 

Glee gave us dozens of characters that we would have never found anywhere else. It gave us happy endings for characters that usually don’t receive them 

We got to see the big black girl with big dreams get everything she ever wanted. We got to see the broken Cheerio learn to love herself, and let others in, in the process. We got to see a gay and a lesbian couple go through the same highs and lows typically afforded to any average heteronormative high school relationship, and end with the gayest double wedding ever aired on television

You don’t have to preface every shred of positivity about the show with “Glee wasn’t perfect but…”. Every show has its flaws. It’s redundant to keep rehashing that point when there’s other things to talk about. Glee tried harder in 2009 than a lot of shows do now. Glee did more for unheard voices in 2009 than most of the shows out there now

I’ve seen a lot of people be told off for expressing their feelings over this situation by contextualising their sadness through how much the character, Santana Lopez, meant to them.

Naya Rivera is beloved by the LGBTQ* community, a longstanding ally who never dropped the ball, who showed up for us time and time again, who pushed tirelessly behind the scenes for Santana Lopez to have meaningful storylines rather than just flippant derogatory jokes about her homosexuality. 

Naya saw us during a time when nobody saw us, and we saw Naya during a time we had never before seen ourselves depicted on television living full happy lives. The last few days I have been reminded of her kindness and utter humility, whenever she was commended for her contribution towards the progression of LGBTQ* representation on television she never failed to acknowledge the community:

“It has been one of the great blessings in my life to receive such love and touching stories as a result of my portrayal of Santana Lopez on Glee. We are all put on this earth to be a service to others and I am grateful that for some, my Cheerios ponytail and sassy sashays may have given a little light to someone somewhere, who may have needed it. To everyone whose heartfelt stories I have heard or read, I thank you for truly enriching my life.” – Naya Rivera, 2017.

When I saw the headlines I felt instantly transported to being sixteen years old again, to the incredible impact this woman had on my life, and for the first time in longer than I care to admit I shed a tear and hoped for a miracle. Now, I hope for her to find her way home in the most respectful and dignified way possible.

Please, if you see people expressing their sadness or feelings by referencing Santana Lopez, don’t assume it’s virtue signalling or shallow commentary. We understand she was a real human, and I know for me personally it’s because of her humanity and generous kindness to my community that I feel personally touched and saddened by this tragedy.