Queer Cheer: Disney Dreams & Rainbow Realness

Summary of HPOE 45:

• 00:00 Hosts and Guests Introduction
• 00:50 Pride Month focus and framing queer media through Disney
• 02:00 Progress or performative? Disney’s track record on LGBTQ+ representation
• 06:00 Nostalgic queer awakenings: crushes, princesses, and games
• 10:00 Queer coding in villains: Ursula, Jafar, and beyond
• 13:30 Explaining the Hays Code and its legacy in queer subtext
• 15:00 Highlights from Disney’s official Pride Night
• 18:00 Emotional weight of safe spaces at theme parks
• 20:00 Critiques of Disney’s capitalist allyship
• 22:00 Centering joy: queer characters beyond coming-out stories
• 24:30 Luca and fan interpretations as liberation
• 28:30 Elsa, headcanons, and intersectional readings
• 31:00 The power of dynamic identities in evolving characters
• 33:00 Queering Spider-Man and self-discovery through metaphor
• 36:00 Labels, fluidity, and growing into new identities
• 38:00 Demisexuality and the importance of representation
• 40:00 Jodie on travel, storytelling, and affirming queer youth
• 43:00 Affirmations that actually work
• 46:00 Shalom on community building and queer history
• 50:00 Spotlighting queer media: Punks, Watermelon Woman, indie music
• 54:00 Real allyship: more than rainbows—listen, uplift, include
• 59:00 Final thoughts and where to find Queer Cheer and Boy Venus’s music

00:00:00:00 – 00:00:08:18

00:00:08:18 – 00:00:35:00

Unknown

Hello, everyone. Welcome to the happiest pot on Earth. I’m Steph. I’m an educator who uses passions and fandoms to help my students grow and learn about themselves and the world around them. And I’m Ariel, a licensed therapist who uses clients passions and fandom to help them grow and heal from trauma and mental and wellness. Hey everyone, I’m Jodi Anders, I am a Jewish bisexual creator and I focus on creating diversity and promoting youth empowerment.

00:00:35:02 – 00:01:01:01

Unknown

I currently serve as the publicity and communications director for a youth nonprofit in California, and I’ve spent over two decades mentoring teens in confidence and leadership skills. I’m the coauthor author of Queer Cheer Activities Advice and Affirmations for LGBTQ Plus Teens, and I also produce a podcast. Let’s talk about leadership, service, and Sisterhood, which is a podcast for teens by teens.

00:01:01:01 – 00:01:25:12

Unknown

Hi. My name is Shalom. As a student, I’ve been involved in many campaigns and community organizing organizations, working with youth organizers in the San Fernando Valley to fight for the rights of Filipino migrant workers, justice and visibility for displaced ethnic communities abroad, and have worked to create, support and educate members of the Residents of Color community through the creation of my ever growing coalition.

00:01:25:14 – 00:01:51:16

Unknown

California State University, Northridge is Queer Students of Color Club. I’m also a queer indie musician, producing music under the name Boy Venus. Check me out on SoundCloud if you’re interested. Specifically working within the electronic genre to make music reminiscent of games like Pokemon Legends of Zelda, Undertale, while also using techniques from artists like Rebecca Sugar, Ivy Tran and Stephen Filemon.

00:01:52:00 – 00:02:08:14

Unknown

beautiful. And here at Happiest Pod, we dissect Disney Medium. So the critical lens. Why? Because we are more than just fans and we expect more from the mediums we consume. So, what are we talking about today? As you both heard these wonderful introductions from our exceptional guests today we have Jodi and Shalom.

00:02:08:15 – 00:02:38:08

Unknown

Welcome to the happiest Pod on Earth. We are so thrilled that you are here to talk about all things LGBTQ representation. In honor of Pride Month and we’re really excited to really dive in, and, see the world and see the Disney World from Euro Isles lens. So yeah, welcome to the podcast. So to be here, I’m curious, you know, we have heard about representation in general in the media.

00:02:38:08 – 00:02:59:20

Unknown

And when it comes to Disney, do you feel or believe that they’re increasing LGBTQ plus representation, and if so, when do you think they’ve done it? And are there opportunities they missed or were they just like completely missed the mark? I feel like it’s kind of like an ebb and flow situation. I mean, it’s definitely had some more, you know, representation.

00:02:59:20 – 00:03:24:23

Unknown

And actually this discussion can get so nuanced, right? Because are we talking about like, original animation? Are we talking about like the entire Disney, universe, you know, within Marvel and Star Wars? So, at this point, apparently Hulu’s in there too. So if there’s some horror movies, or other anime animation you want to include that counts.

00:03:25:01 – 00:04:11:02

Unknown

Yeah, I think like in the more like traditional sense of Disney Pixar. It’s it’s slowly increasing, like strictly within like movies and TV. Like in movies, I feel like we’re still not other than maybe like Strange World getting those main characters. That would be great. But, it’s really nice to see at least, you know, some nuances through the community, like having a non-binary character in elementals or, just, you know, at least some representation.

00:04:11:02 – 00:04:57:15

Unknown

Which is better than that. But, there’s also just questionable things that they’ve done in the sense of like pulling from different markets or, you know, like, I know, so, like when they did Lightyear, I, I loved that they had a Lisa like, that his sidekick was such a big representation. And then it was so incredibly heartbreaking to have this, reaction to what was not even a minute of their relationship, the lesbian relationship she had, which was this beautiful little heartwarming family and, seeing at the time, like them, like pulling it from market to things like that.

00:04:57:17 – 00:05:01:20

Unknown

But at the same time, like, if we kind of pull back the lens a little bit,

00:05:01:20 – 00:05:25:22

Unknown

at the same time, there’s like getting the, the monthly emails, not even just the LGBTQ, pieces. They will highlight a monthly email, but like other minority communities and, even, like, abilities, I think they’re doing better on, although sometimes embarrassing when they maybe only have 1 or 2.

00:05:26:00 – 00:05:49:16

Unknown

And I mean, I went to Pride Night. I just do that last night, which, you know, they now officially have their official one. And how many years do we have our unofficial. You know, we we still do have kids at Disneyland, but like, it’s nice that they’re officially hosting that. So. Getting better. But riding a wave and still carrying a little too much.

00:05:49:16 – 00:06:15:06

Unknown

Maybe about what some people think. Sheila, any thoughts on your in? Yeah. I totally agree. And I think when thinking about representation at Disney, it’s when you look at it as like a conglomerate. I do think that they’ve missed the mark in a lot of ways. But I do think if you look at individual stories and individual narratives, then, you know, there’s some great representation.

00:06:15:08 – 00:06:31:16

Unknown

At Disney for queer people, like just recently, in fact, they did a remake of the goosebumps books, and Myles McKenna, who’s a trans, activist, trans activist, actor and musician, is one of the leads in the show. And so, like,

00:06:31:16 – 00:06:45:16

Unknown

individual properties, you know, they do have great representation. And even ones that, like, aren’t necessarily inherently queer, like frozen, you know what I mean?

00:06:45:16 – 00:07:10:02

Unknown

Or like, not well, turning red too. But then also, Luca, you know, those are movies that weren’t intended to be queer, but they’re autobiographical stories that, you know, queer people can relate to. You know, like having those is great and that it makes you feel more seen. But I think as a, like a conglomeration, I think that’s really the way.

00:07:10:04 – 00:07:39:18

Unknown

And I love when you said that there are stories that have been out there that queer people can relate to. So thinking back when you were younger, did you have any specific Disney characters that you were drawn to? Or like you were you just felt this special connection to real? Yeah. I, Todd, Jody and Eric, actually that, the way that I found out that I was queer is through watching The Little Mermaid.

00:07:39:20 – 00:08:06:04

Unknown

Because I had a crush on both Eric and area. Yes. And that was really my first, like, understanding of queerness, you know, even before I could put words to it. Disney kind of opened up my mind for queerness, and I think a large part of that was like, I grew up, for a while in a very, like, predominantly woman like community.

00:08:06:04 – 00:08:34:06

Unknown

I don’t know how to say that, but I grew up with a lot of women, basically. My best friend for like a long time was my cousin, and, like, she taught me how to braid. She taught me how to, like, dress dolls and things. Like, I learned how to paint nails and, we would watch, like, Disney princess movies and play the little like, there used to be a switch game where you just got, like, a toggle and you just slid like, I don’t know, not switch.

00:08:34:08 – 00:08:54:08

Unknown

We like, tendo we Disney princess game. Yeah. Where you just, like, would toggle and, like, do little mini games for each Disney princess. And I was like, my favorite game. And so like, yeah, I think Disney in a lot of ways as, like a child was my first avenue of queerness even before I knew what it meant.

00:08:54:10 – 00:09:35:08

Unknown

So. Yeah. Yeah. How about you, Jody? Oh my gosh. You know, I think that I like to be 1,000% honest. Like, until I got older, like, I missed a lot of, like, the queer coding that happened in Disney. And it’s incredible. Like, even, you know, when I was pregnant, last night, like, seeing quotes and seeing things that are pulled out of, like, movies that I watched as a teenager, that I’m like, oh my gosh, like, how did I miss, like given that, like we just talked about a Little Mermaid, you know, and like, the entire, like, part of their world on, you know, and how so many people have

00:09:35:08 – 00:10:08:02

Unknown

taken that on as like a, an anthem. Otherness in a way, you know, like, and now like, kind of thinking back to, you know, how much like I was obsessed at the time with like, beauty and the beast and, just kind of thinking that I, I felt that like, I saw it like I saw, characters that were, that were othered and that were, like, outcast and that I was drawn to them without, like, really understanding what was happening to me.

00:10:08:04 – 00:10:34:12

Unknown

Yeah. Something so beautiful, especially about The Little Mermaid two that you reminded me of Jodi is like, I think the guy who wrote it was queer. And like his writing of The Little Mermaid story was about, like, his experience with unrequited love as a queer person. Which is why when the prince rejects her, she, like, turns into seafoam at the end.

00:10:34:14 – 00:10:51:06

Unknown

And the original, Hans Christian Andersen, like. Yeah. Yeah, yeah. So I don’t know, it’s like there’s beauty even in that. Just like exposing people to queer stories, even if they aren’t like queer when you’re exposed to that. Yeah. You know what I mean?

00:10:51:07 – 00:11:18:18

Unknown

and for our listeners, our episode 24 Disney Villains, where we had chance on, he explained what queer coding is, which is an attribution of queer traits to a fictional character, sometimes stereotypical, sometimes, hidden, where they create a expression of gender identity or sexual orientation that, could be projected onto them for people who have a queer experience.

00:11:18:20 – 00:11:49:05

Unknown

And the reason we talked about that in the Dylan the Villains episode is because a lot of villains are quite coded. And speaking of villains, the inspiration for Ursula herself was a drag queen named divine. So it was right there in front of our faces for a very long time. And that it posed as inspiration. And she isn’t such an iconic villain that, you know, Ursula in herself, the way Disney portrayed her was very tied to queerness.

00:11:49:07 – 00:12:09:00

Unknown

It was so funny, actually, when I was talking with a friend of mine about, which characters are queer coded in Disney? There was like kind of a piece of me that was like, why are they villains? And I was like, rejecting something. And like, one of them came up. Jafar. Right. And and I was like, Jafar.

00:12:09:01 – 00:12:50:17

Unknown

What? Why are there so many people? It’s ever, like looking into it and actually, the creator who was gay said, yes, I created him after, like. And I’m like, I’m wrong. I’m wrong. You know, like. Yeah, yeah. It’s especially interesting to think about things like that, like with, the impacts of the Hays Code and, you know, film and television, you know, like having to queer code characters, so that people can have representation and see themselves and like the idea of Devo worshiping and things like that come from the Hays Code and like, not having proper representation.

00:12:50:17 – 00:13:26:14

Unknown

So you cling to like, female characters who go through similar things as you and like, I don’t know, it’s like even when they try to stop us, we’ll find a way. And I just love that, you know what I mean? Are you able to explain to our audience with the Hays Code? Is, yes. So the Hays Code was a list of rules, and guidelines for television and film that were created and enforced, from, I think, the 1930s to the 1960s, 1934 to 1968.

00:13:26:16 – 00:13:57:07

Unknown

Yes. Yes. Yeah. And so, it prohibited things like, like conversations about menstruation. I’m pretty sure, as well as birth, like just real. Yeah. Birth. Anything that was considered, like, sexually promiscuous, or like perverted, which includes queer people. I think conversations about, like, wrongdoings of the military as well were in there.

00:13:57:07 – 00:14:20:07

Unknown

Yes. So, yeah. Yeah, a lot of censoring. A lot of things. Yes. Yeah. Yes. And and we know it ended in, the 60s because of the civil rights movement and the push towards appropriate representation and questioning some of the things that we were seeing on screen, specifically the, the rule that was respect for the law and that law could not be ridiculed.

00:14:20:07 – 00:14:30:03

Unknown

And there should be, sympathy towards, those who might violate it if they are within uniform. Yeah. In that progression for sure.

00:14:30:03 – 00:14:58:08

Unknown

Jody, could you tell us about Pride Night? Is there one thing you really loved and one thing that you would change? So. Right. Night. They had their first night last night, and, Guys. Okay. I just remember, like, first thing that happened last night, so we we there’s, like, a lot of really cute things, like, there’s an overabundance of rainbow food, which is, like, overwhelming.

00:14:58:10 – 00:15:26:13

Unknown

And there’s, like, lots of really cute, like, backdrops that you can take your picture with and quotes that they’ve taken from, like, different movies they perceive to, you know, being inspirational and related to pride. But I love my favorite things are, one that they take the characters and they dress them in cool like pride, rainbow clothes that like, make you like, sorry.

00:15:26:14 – 00:15:51:05

Unknown

No, it was Donald. No, I said Mickey. Donald’s like, my favorite. Donald had. That’s like, beanie hat thing on with a cute little rainbow. Is it like a beret? Glitter? Or would you call it rhinestone? You know, they really. Because it was like a beanie hat with, like, rhinestone heart in rainbow hat, and he’s, like, pointing it out to me.

00:15:51:05 – 00:16:09:15

Unknown

It was the cutest thing. And then, like, Clarabelle had this, like, rainbow pleated dress on, Oh, my gosh, there’s so many highlights, guys. And then Melissa and Cruella literally did like a,

00:16:09:15 – 00:16:21:09

Unknown

a runway. They did like, they were like they were voguing. Yes, they were, they were they were holding hands. I would have loved to see that.

00:16:21:11 – 00:16:51:22

Unknown

Wow. I was so yeah, I hope there’s a recording that I, there’s got to be I know that people were okay. We got there like, just in time, to see it. And I was dying. I was dying just talking about how they’re also queer coded and. That they were they were amazing. They were amazing. But okay, literally the best thing, honestly, to be is,

00:16:52:00 – 00:17:18:20

Unknown

Guys, like, anywhere I, anywhere I go, like, sometimes there’s a question of like, am I going into the space where it’s safe? Like, is it okay for me to wear something pride related or, you know, and it was just so beautiful. Like I was telling my friend last night, when I’m in a space and I see something like rainbow or I see something pride, my eye like zooms to it like, oh, that’s somebody from my community or that’s Covid, you know, whatever.

00:17:18:22 – 00:17:47:05

Unknown

And everybody last night, like every single person is way sometimes like, oh my gosh, this is like this, this is my place. And we’re dancing with like Lilo and Stitch and I’m looking at I’m like, oh my gosh, there’s every like person from every background, every ability. And we’re all dancing together and like, we don’t care, you know, can we we look like we’re we’re like, say, do we like how silly we look like we’re just happy.

00:17:47:05 – 00:18:11:03

Unknown

Like we’re accepted. We’re here. Like, this is gorgeous. Like that. Like, to me, the beauty of any pride space, really. And it was nice for Disneyland to give that to us. Beautiful. Wonderful. Oh, that’s so lovely. It sounds way better than what happened to me. And stuff was like, so I’m so. Oh, yeah, yeah, listen to that song if you want to hear about it.

00:18:11:03 – 00:18:39:12

Unknown

But yeah, all the drama about that. I mean, there’s certainly like misses and the marks that they make, you know, and there’s so much like merchandizing and you know, there’s things you could dissect from it. But like having having that space though, like it definitely means something to me as I mean, I’m I will relate. When I was younger and I went for gay days, like with a friend, we took a picture with Cinderella.

00:18:39:14 – 00:19:04:20

Unknown

And I was telling my friend last night, like, it’s such a world of difference that, like, we have these characters now that are dressed up in rainbow and we’re having fun and there’s like jokey and doing like, very clear coded like things where as when I went when I was younger, two unofficial gay days and I like went to take a picture with Cinderella.

00:19:04:22 – 00:19:34:23

Unknown

She literally cringed at this. So difference, Night and day difference. And and you are talking about and we’ve talked about this on the podcast when it comes to the, Disneyland community. I don’t know about Disney World. We have unofficial theme days, that have started to slowly become more official in this case, like actually taken on by the, organization.

00:19:35:01 – 00:19:59:03

Unknown

Because I know, like, our friend Tania goes on bats day, for, like, all the emo, goth and, like a metal community. And sometimes the characters will wear, like, dark clothing, but that one isn’t official yet. So as we start to have more voices, that kind of makes Disneyland want to do more things.

00:19:59:05 – 00:20:20:14

Unknown

Maybe for capitalism, but that’s fine. Yeah, sometimes. Yeah. You know, you get to, like, exploit their capitalism, I guess. I don’t know, it’s a very weird line. It’s a weird line. Yeah, yeah. But I’m glad you had a really great experience. And, you know, hopefully in the future that they make these after Dark events more, more inclusive.

00:20:20:14 – 00:20:42:23

Unknown

And also just like reserving that space, that public space, I think is what I’m hearing was most important. And recognizing that public space for your community, I think that that that was my biggest takeaway from that. And, you know, hopefully they continue to do it in the future because as we know, some After Dark events have been canceled and they haven’t been brought back.

00:20:43:04 – 00:21:11:11

Unknown

I hope you all get how many days are they doing? Right now? Is it was it just one or. It’s multiple, right. I think two is. I know they’re doing it tomorrow. Great. Good. Okay. Yeah. 18th and the 20th. Yes. And and something that we’ve also talked about on the podcast is if you’re doing any of the night events, the second day is usually a little different than the first day because they’ve learned something like organization wise.

00:21:11:13 – 00:21:31:05

Unknown

And so sometimes that makes it a little bit easier to navigate. Sometimes it adds its own little barrier to it. So, you can’t you can’t even compare the same event. I would love to get like, the participants from every single different event and then have like, this roundtable discussion of what worked, what didn’t work. Did you get to eat?

00:21:31:07 – 00:21:49:17

Unknown

Did you get to like, drink the thing you wanted to drink? Did you get to take a picture with that character? Because I want to know these these stories. But anyway, I digress. But yeah. Anything else? Ariel? Yeah. Was the food actually good or was it just slapped a rainbow? A lot of it seems to be like slap rainbow on it.

00:21:49:18 – 00:22:10:09

Unknown

We did not try. I really I think there was okay. There was a Rice Krispie that was kind of calling my name, and I was like, it just looks pretty. I know what that Rice Krispie taste like. I don’t need, yeah. Also that much sugar after dark. It is a lot. And, you know, it’s not like during the day when you’re burning calories.

00:22:10:09 – 00:22:27:15

Unknown

It’s you’re you’re consuming all of this and then you’re going to like, pass out, wherever you are at the end of the night, there was, I think instead of the gray stuff, they had the rainbow stuff from beauty and the beast. It’s delicious. Like, okay.

00:22:27:15 – 00:22:43:14

Unknown

And thinking about Disney’s role in advocacy and inclusion, what are both of y’all’s thoughts on how Disney can continue to be a positive force for inclusion and representation within the LGBTQ plus community? Because I know there is a lot of work to do still.

00:22:43:15 – 00:23:06:06

Unknown

But you know, keeping as we are trying to think of it in a positive light because, you know, we really we, we know that there’s work to be done, like I said. But what do you think? What do you think that you’re doing. Right. And what can they expand on that basically? I mean, I think positive queer characters in main roles.

00:23:06:08 – 00:23:33:04

Unknown

Absolutely. Absolutely. Yes. Yes. And not pitting them as sidekicks or not just being a B line story. Because these stories and deserve to be highlighted, right? Yeah. And, you know, not just doing the traditional, like coming out or having a place in trauma, you know, showing us in the light, succeeding and thriving. And that’s not our entire identity.

00:23:33:06 – 00:23:58:09

Unknown

But like, yeah, like highlighting and showing normalcy basically. Yeah. I do think, though, that an issue that Disney has been facing with their mainstream stuff is the fact that they’re trying to be like, yes, gay people are normal, so we won’t bring attention to it. They’re gay. Right? But you know, because it’s normal. It’s like, yeah, we’ll have like two seconds of them with a little pride flag in the background.

00:23:58:11 – 00:24:19:15

Unknown

Which I feel like Disney hasn’t earned the right to be there yet. Low key. Like we have to go through the, like, conversations about being queer before we can get to the point where it’s normal. And Disney is kind of like a homophobic parent right now. It’s like, yeah, I’m so glad that you’re like, you came out to me.

00:24:19:18 – 00:24:58:12

Unknown

Let’s hide it from the family that you know what I mean? Great point. Yeah. And so accurate. Yeah. Yes, yes. Yeah, I, I think when it comes to the inclusion, how did any of you see the, the Pixar short out. Yes. Oh yeah. Yeah. It came out in May 2020. So the way the pandemic and it features two prominent gay men and one of them is just coming out to his parent for like the first time.

00:24:58:14 – 00:25:22:17

Unknown

And the kiss and and it’s a Pixar short. So, you know, of course it’s Pixar of when it comes to like, I feel more diversity and inclusion. Pixar is doing it way more than the Disney, although the news has come out that there might roll that back, which will be very sad. However, I was really happy to see it was an entire short and he was scared, but there wasn’t a traumatic experience.

00:25:22:17 – 00:25:42:17

Unknown

Like, I think one of the things that I hear from a lot of my queer friends is like, can I have a gay character that doesn’t get murdered after they’ve fallen in love? Like, that’s what we see in mainstream. And like, you know, I had a lot of them say, if Disney puts more queer people in, they’re going to they’re going to be a parent that gets murdered because that’s like Disney, that model.

00:25:42:19 – 00:26:03:06

Unknown

So it’s like, is that in a line with Disney, or is it like just feeding this narrative of trauma within the community versus celebration? And so that the short is the only one that I can think of where it’s prominent? There’s main characters. It’s not, assumed they’re not in the background. There’s not a lot of conversation happening.

00:26:03:06 – 00:26:25:01

Unknown

I think, but we understand the essence of just, like, wanting to, be in a relationship, feeling a little bit of butterflies and then kind of sharing that experience with your parent, and it being okay. I think that was the other thing. There was no, rejection. There was, confusion from the parents of, like, what exactly are you hiding from me?

00:26:25:03 – 00:26:55:03

Unknown

And I thought it was a really beautiful short, but it’s the only one that comes to my mind where I’m not imprinting. Otherwise, it’s like Luca to me is it’s like queer representation of not only potentially bi or pan people, but even queer romance, right? That isn’t just monogamous or heteronormative in that sense. Yeah, like Luca is so amazing because the creator of Luca was like, I didn’t intend for this to be gay, but real, you know what I mean?

00:26:55:03 – 00:27:20:02

Unknown

Like, if that’s how you all see it, then that’s how you all see it. And I’m glad. But when I watched Luca, I was I don’t remember the names of the characters, but the target boy or the tall not gave away the taller gay boy. I was like, he’s gay. I yeah, I don’t know. Yeah. Luca, Alberto and Julia.

00:27:20:02 – 00:27:48:03

Unknown

Julia. Yeah. Okay. Yeah. Alberto. I thought Alberto was so queer. Just even by, I don’t know, I think, like, I just saw so much of myself and Alberto. I’ve had experiences like that as a kid, you know what I mean? Like having an identity that you have to keep hidden, and that you share with someone close to you and you’re like, OMG, we have the same identity.

00:27:48:03 – 00:28:15:17

Unknown

This is crazy. But then when it comes to expressing that in public, you know, there’s fear of rejection. Especially from, you know, a place of wanting to feel at home and being afraid that by losing, you know, that connection with these people that you’ve just met, you know, you’ll never have community again. Which is what I could tell was going through Lucas mind when he was like, ill get that.

00:28:15:18 – 00:28:45:00

Unknown

He wants to get away from me. So, yeah, I don’t know. It’s just it’s such a good, like, encapsulation of, like, an early queer experience that it’s crazy that it wasn’t meant to be that way. But it’s also amazing that, you know, like, identity is multifaceted and it’s so intersectional that, like, you can exist within, like, different identities and still be able to see yourself through the same story.

00:28:45:02 – 00:29:05:18

Unknown

And yeah, Bangor movie is just so good. I love that, I love Luca like it immediately became one of my favorite like Disney movies. And yeah, there was no way. I mean, I know, like all my friends at the time were just like, this movie has to be the gay like, there’s just no way that it’s not.

00:29:05:22 – 00:29:35:10

Unknown

But I also think it’s like kind of beautiful. That it’s not explicitly because it’s maybe but we, that we can be like hey look at this story. Look at this experience so that you can have some understanding. Yeah, yeah, yeah I think that’s really interesting that you note that because I have heard people say that, the Ace community has hoped that Elsa is ace because it doesn’t seem like she has a desire for a romance or a desire for sexual attraction.

00:29:35:12 – 00:29:56:12

Unknown

And then I’ve seen, the, lesbian community hope that she gets a woman partner or, a same sex partner because she could be lesbian. And if we if we pick a route, then that kind of excludes somebody else. But if we don’t pick her out, everyone can project on. But then we didn’t pick her out, which makes it look like excluding everybody.

00:29:56:14 – 00:30:28:12

Unknown

But she could also be lesbian and bisexual, you know what I mean? Like, these identities are intersectional. They’re not like, yeah, one or the other. And I don’t know, like, I think real, I think real, I think also in a way which I don’t know, maybe you should edit this out, but I think in a way, a lot of Disney characters are asexual, just because it’s not really possible for them to express themselves on film outside, just romantically.

00:30:28:14 – 00:30:50:04

Unknown

Yeah. So but then again, like, that’s not really proper representation for anyone who is asexual because there’s nuance in that. Yes. You know what I mean. You see, one of the characters that, we were talking about kind of being like, attributed as a queer coded character was the Meredith from brave and we were sort of like thinking about it.

00:30:50:04 – 00:31:25:04

Unknown

And essentially the entire kind of reason that she’s queer coded is that, oh, she’s this strong woman who, like, doesn’t have a romantic, character or lead that I’m like, wait a minute, is that really a reason for her to be, like, attributed as a lesbian? As simply like it seems? Yeah. A little sassy. Yeah, I’ve heard that about Moana, too, just because she is just so hyper focused on, you know, just saving her village and nothing else to her matters.

00:31:25:06 – 00:31:47:16

Unknown

But I’m. I felt the same way. I’m like, are we are we really looking at her multifaceted ness, or are we just attributing it to the way that she’s approaching her situation? I, I really love that, you know? Shalom. You were saying that people are so multifaceted, and when we’re looking at them in a story, so many people want to see them as just like one or the other.

00:31:47:18 – 00:32:18:01

Unknown

Whereas when you’re looking at them as a human being, you know that they exist in different ways at different times all the time, because it is it’s dynamic us, our existence is dynamic. And not to get super existential about it, but, you know, it’s it’s very hard to in capsule8 that in a film. But at the same time, I think with stories like Luca, because it the story itself was so rich and the message was told very clearly without explicit instruction.

00:32:18:03 – 00:32:48:02

Unknown

That’s the power of storytelling. And I think if we do more of that kind of storytelling, it isn’t a debate anymore. It’s just how are you impacted by the story and what made you feel the way you felt? Yeah. You know, and I think also even with characters that are like in heteronormative relationships, you know, characters can still be headcanon and different things like, I know, for the trans masculine community, Spider-Man is a big you know, there’s a lot of headcanon set.

00:32:48:02 – 00:33:21:11

Unknown

Peter Parker is trans fat, you know what I mean? Just because of his experience with, like, being bit or, you know, the effects of an external force and changing your body and, you know, some extenuating ways, and then you being seen as more masculine, you know, and being, I don’t know, just perceived as so many different things than you were before or, you know, people a lot of people have compared Peter Parker’s experience before getting bit to gender dysphoria.

00:33:21:13 – 00:33:50:14

Unknown

You know what I mean? And yeah, like even characters who have been written as straight men who have, relationships with women, only and things like that, they’re still, you know, there’s still room for queerness and, yeah. Because these things, you know, like, they’re fluid. Yes. There’s no, like, rigid wall or barrier for, well, for the way that these things can be,

00:33:51:01 – 00:34:23:19

Unknown

No, it makes me think of, one of the things that’s sort of mentioned in the book, and is that, you have all the time in the world to keep discovering yourself like there’s one moment maybe like who you are in this moment. That doesn’t mean like your future self is not. And when we’re talking about essentially trying to find representation, when there when was very limited, in challenging heteronormativity, two people of opposite sex may not be straight.

00:34:23:19 – 00:34:43:09

Unknown

They could both be by people. One of them could be, pan. One of them could be. So I think that is part of looking that intersectionality is if we just automatically assume that they’re both straight people, where’s that assumption coming from and where, where, why is that being normalized in our head about, who these individuals are?

00:34:43:10 – 00:34:59:21

Unknown

Because nobody’s going on film going. I am a straight man, right? I like that is just not happening. So we could say any one of these characters in straight presenting relationships may still be in a very clear relationship.

00:34:59:21 – 00:35:16:17

Unknown

and you can have wear encounters and still identify as straight you know what I mean. Like these labels are self imposed. You know they’re not like while there are communal definitions for these things you know they’re self-imposed labels and you define your identity for yourself.

00:35:16:17 – 00:35:39:06

Unknown

No one else defines it for you. You know what I mean? Not to say that like whatever, like conversion therapy, it’s real or anything. But, you know, you can identify as straight and have dated men in the past and just realize, like, that’s just not my thing. Or you can love dating men and still identify as straight, you know what I mean?

00:35:39:08 – 00:36:04:21

Unknown

Like, I don’t know, they’re self-imposed labels that it’s just like, yeah, you know, you’re making me thinking of like, Lee Shang Lee Shang in a Mulan, right? Because he really, he really enjoyed playing. He really loved Mulan. Like the if we said that, he has to say whether he is straight or bi or gay. That doesn’t show the fact that he was just attracted to this person who he loved all their being.

00:36:04:21 – 00:36:46:01

Unknown

Yeah, well, and I think like one of the things people don’t think about in reality with like, queer labels are being queer is in the same way that you grow and understand yourself throughout life. You know, like how many times, you know, throughout life do you go like, oh, you know, just discovering something about yourself, right? It’s the same, you know, I, I think it was five years ago, maybe a little bit more that I discovered that I was demi sexual and I had no idea, like, what that meant or, you know, anything about it until a friend had mentioned it to me and it literally set off light bulbs like, oh my gosh, like

00:36:46:01 – 00:37:11:06

Unknown

how this affected my youth, how this affected everything. So there’s so much that you can grow and change and understand about yourself that can affect what your label or you know, how you identify. That’s like, why are we allowed to change how we describe ourselves, you know? Yeah. Would you be willing to educate our audience in case they have never heard of the term demi sexual?

00:37:11:08 – 00:37:45:11

Unknown

Yeah. Basically, I don’t want to give a strict definition for everyone. Because there’s obviously, a, I would say an arc of how people, identify as Demi when you come to Demi because it’s way, you know, but for in general, it means, you have to have a romantic or like, a personal connection, in order to have any sort of intimate activity.

00:37:45:13 – 00:38:08:14

Unknown

I think, you know, on that note, let’s kind of move and pivot a little bit into your personal journeys. Jodie, this is a great way to kind of foray into that because, we know your bio mentions that you found your true self through diverse stories and travels. How are these experiences, if there’s one that kind of comes to your mind first, shape your writing and advocacy work?

00:38:08:14 – 00:38:32:19

Unknown

And, on that note, what advice would you give to young LGBTQ plus individuals who are struggling with that self acceptance? So as far as, discovering myself, I grew up in a, like, conservative suburb of Los Angeles, and I went to a high school that, as far as I knew, there were only two other openly gay people there.

00:38:32:21 – 00:39:09:22

Unknown

So it’s not very like misunderstood in a lot of ways. I didn’t even really have a relationship with those people. Like, I kind of knew who they were, but, I never got to sit down and have a conversation with someone else who was clearly probably mid-twenties, maybe. So when I started traveling, not so much that I met people within my community, but that I could see what it was like in different communities, that I could see people who are different within their communities or different from my own community.

00:39:10:00 – 00:39:34:13

Unknown

It just really opened up, juxtaposed with books, by the way, like, you know, seeing that same thing in books that it was okay to be different, like it was okay and beautiful to be different, really. Like, you know, when I would travel somewhere, I would see these different, like, cultures or traditions or, you know, you name it and just think they were really cool.

00:39:34:13 – 00:39:56:01

Unknown

And that was cool that something else was different. Like it was okay to be different and know. What is your favorite place that you visited? The top three. Maybe if you can’t narrow it down to one place, like, like ever in my life. Yeah. I mean, what’s coming? What’s coming to mind now? You can always change your mind.

00:39:56:01 – 00:40:24:21

Unknown

And this is not definitive. Oh, no rush, I mean, I love I love traveling so much. I really loved going to Turkey. It was so different and so beautiful. Like, it was one of the first places, but I, like, fell in love with the food, like, because I’m, I’m always, like, scared because I’m allergic to a bunch of different things.

00:40:24:21 – 00:40:56:00

Unknown

But for some reason, everything was just right there. But, like, everybody was really nice there, and I don’t know, everything, like, just the culture and. Yeah, I also really loved Scotland. Gorgeous, really kind people, really intriguing. Like how they sort of mix, like old world cut culture and things. And, probably Japan, I really just loved.

00:40:56:00 – 00:41:23:13

Unknown

Oh, no, maybe China, I don’t know. Yeah. I’ve been to 30 countries. Got that over 30 snaps. Yeah. That’s so, but like, like seeing the Great Wall was like one of the most incredible experiences and seeing how, people in China, like, lived. That was like, different than how we lived and getting to witness those customs. And again, like, there’s, so many ancient buildings.

00:41:23:13 – 00:42:15:03

Unknown

And this juxtaposes and, like an ancient culture, with the modern culture and I don’t know, guys like, you know, so, so my answer is going to be different. Okay. That’s okay. As far as, advice that I would give, I would say, honestly, really getting to know yourself, like if you can explore yourself, like outside the noise and, basically explore the ways that, you know, you are you journal, you know, go to support groups if you have to or find like, good supportive friends and just really, like, find out who you are.

00:42:15:05 – 00:42:45:04

Unknown

Like, I think that would be my first, like, piece of advice. And then like affirmations and affirming that like basically then, you know, making sure that, you know, that that’s valuable, that that’s something that’s unique and beautiful and a gift and that you have a completely different way of viewing the world and a completely beautiful way of viewing the world and contributing to the world, and like finding everything around that to affirm yourself every day.

00:42:45:04 – 00:43:19:17

Unknown

Because we we all have moments of doubt. We all have moments of like questioning our our perfection and things like that. You know that. Like, you just have to, like, build this bubble of affirming yourself around yourself, framing yourself around yourself. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Because in your book you have rainbow affirmations after each section, that are specifically designed for queer teens to be able to celebrate themselves and, are specifically targeted to affirming that part of your identity, as well as how it intersects with your honor, other identities.

00:43:19:19 – 00:43:45:08

Unknown

And the interesting thing about affirmations is, like we tend to see them as very surface level. And so when you read them in the book, they are so impactful. They’re so intimate and internal. It really challenge is this idea that you’re just just talking noise or like, like faking it til you make it. It’s, really deep inside look, and it aligns with this belief that you’re sharing where it’s like, get to know yourself.

00:43:45:08 – 00:44:07:04

Unknown

It is okay to get to know yourself. It is okay to explore more of you if you have an affirmation, for instance, that you read that says, I, I’m trying to think of like something very I mean, even if it’s just like I live, laugh, love. Yeah. If it’s if it’s something like, you know, I am sparkly, right?

00:44:07:04 – 00:44:46:22

Unknown

And you’re not a smart person or I don’t that’s not like a real strong affirmation, but, it’s not going to resonate with you. Right? So like, that’s part of, you know, why we did like the sections and how we did the book, you know, and having voices from teens that you can look at and see, I identify with that or I relate to that, because then you can look at the affirmations that really speak to you, because you have to believe at least a small part of that affirmation, you know, to, to make it really work, you know, to really, get into your brain and be like, okay, this is going to

00:44:46:22 – 00:45:20:01

Unknown

have power with me. Yes, yes. Research has shown that, we as humans innately feel discomforted by lying to ourselves. And, and we have a negative bias. So we tend to. Which is weird because usually the negativity is a lie to ourselves. So it’s like these two opposing forces. And so when we speak in affirmation, it’s a lot easier to connect to it if we’re projecting on to a future self, if we don’t feel it right now, or if we add a buffer to it that makes it feel right now.

00:45:20:03 – 00:45:50:19

Unknown

And the wonderful thing about the affirmations in the books is there’s a variety of them. So you can choose and, and you’ve given the reader’s permission to adapt them. They don’t have to just stick to the language that was given. And I find in therapy sessions, when we’re trying to create affirmations, it really needs to be individualistic and has to be felt somewhere that this could be right or maybe right, versus it being spoken into right now if I don’t feel it, because I will reject that with all of my soul.

00:45:50:23 – 00:46:08:02

Unknown

Right. And whenever in the classroom you do an about me, if you say, how do you feel right now? More than likely, the kids are going to be like, I’m tired, I’m sleepy, I’m hungry. But if you say, you know how, how do you want to feel in a week? Or how do you want to feel when you’re in the next grade level?

00:46:08:02 – 00:46:30:23

Unknown

So it’s like, oh, I want to feel smarter or I want to feel more stronger, or I want to get better at kickball or something. So, you know, I mean, it is all true. Whenever you’re thinking of yourself in that present moment, it usually is pretty negative. But if you are thinking about yourself in the future, more than likely it’ll be a positive outcome of, yeah, one day those timelines will intersect.

00:46:31:01 – 00:46:56:22

Unknown

As we’ve seen from Loki, who I hear is also a queer icon. So there you go. Yes, one of my favorite. Shalom. Let’s move on to you. Tell us how you became connected with Jodi. I know that as we have been talking, I don’t know if it’s obvious to our readers, but, Sholem is quite younger than most of us here on the podcast, so, they have a very special, an interest in, you know, everything.

00:46:56:22 – 00:47:19:09

Unknown

And so, I just want to say, as I’m hearing you talk, I have so much hope because you are so insightful. And so, you know, just the way that you’re articulating things. Kudos to you. Because I just saw a lot of my middle schoolers in eighth grade graduate on. And I’ve known these kids since they were like in second, first grade.

00:47:19:09 – 00:47:28:09

Unknown

And I’m like, are you going to be okay? I think you’re going to be okay. But I don’t know if you’re going to be okay. But, you know, I, I have loved your input so far. So thank you.

00:47:28:09 – 00:47:37:07

Unknown

But anyway, going back to the subject matter, how did you and Jodi get connected?

00:47:37:09 – 00:48:05:08

Unknown

Well, my mom is also an author. And they’re both good friends, and, my mom has been, like, super cool with me being queer. And she’s always, like, known. I’m a I’m the type of person I kind of just do things. So I’ll be like, mom, I’m joining a coalition. He’s like, okay, cool. Like mom, I’m at a protest right now.

00:48:05:10 – 00:48:40:01

Unknown

She’s like, oh, okay, cool. And that’s just kind of how I am. But because, my mom knew that Jodi and Eric were writing Queer Cheer. She was like, hey, maybe it would be good to connect to you guys because, like, I’ve done a lot of work, just within the queer community. As a queer person, a lot of my understanding of, like, my identity has come from, like, researching queer theory, reading Judith Butler and Audre Lorde and, you know, learning about queer history and just getting involved in those communities.

00:48:40:03 – 00:49:09:22

Unknown

And my mom thought it would be a great opportunity, and it really I loved, meeting Jodi for the first time and having conversations about my experience as a queer person. And yeah, I’m just so grateful for this opportunity. So thank you again to, I’ve read some of your stories so far. So the way that the book is sort of designed, there’s snippets from different, teens of a variety of ages talking about their experience.

00:49:10:00 – 00:49:23:08

Unknown

I haven’t finished the book. I’m still reading it. I have used some sections with my clients already. And when I mentioned that you’d be on the podcast, they are very excited to hear you. So, you you have some hidden fans

00:49:23:08 – 00:49:38:14

Unknown

Yeah, it’s so I mean, when we, set out to find all of our teams, we basically, you know, we went through some of the people that we knew and then some of the like calling out between social media, between, you know, our community.

00:49:38:16 – 00:50:15:12

Unknown

And we had like, this goal to, find everyone from, you know, as many different identities as many different cultures, you know, like just trying to get as wide of a net as we could so that we could include as many voices as we could. And I mean, going into what you were saying, like every one of my conversations with these teens was like, I was crying, but it’s like it was just they’re all like, so much hope for the future and so insightful and incredible and, I mean, we were blown away.

00:50:15:14 – 00:50:46:05

Unknown

Yeah. They’re so smart. They’re so compassionate. So like beautiful, beautiful people. Like, it was incredible being like, that’s my favorite part of all of this is, is having met. Yeah. And I mean, I don’t remember being that wise sounding when I was that age. I think I was still trying to figure out how to pair, like a pair of jeans with, like, a top that would be appropriate for some kind of interview at like Jamba Juice or something.

00:50:46:05 – 00:51:11:06

Unknown

Like that’s where my mind was like, not, you know, this all encompassing, you know, how do we how do we look at ourselves? How do we, you know, give ourselves love? How do we project that with the circles that we have? How do we create change in the world using the power that we have? I think, you know, because the world has changed in the last 20 years, or maybe even the last 15 to 20 years.

00:51:11:08 – 00:51:34:21

Unknown

The the resources are endless. And I think it takes a certain amount of, smartness is not a word. It takes a certain amount of intelligence to navigate all of that with your devices, with, you know, what you can access, the people you can access. And, you know, just juggling all of that, you know, you guys really have the skills that we couldn’t even have imagined.

00:51:34:21 – 00:51:58:15

Unknown

If we had that at our fingertips at our age. Well, thank you, but it really does mean a lot. And yeah, I do think a large part of just my the things that I know and the things that I’m passionate about is just having access, to like, history, you know what I mean? Especially queer media. I talk about this in the book.

00:51:58:17 – 00:52:23:08

Unknown

I do, but, one of my favorite movies is this movie called punk, which came out in, I think, like 2001, and it’s one of the only, like, queer black blockbuster films. It’s like a B-list movie, but it’s one of my favorite movies ever because it shows queer blackness in a way that I had never seen before on film.

00:52:23:10 – 00:52:47:21

Unknown

And other movies like The Watermelon Woman by Cheryl Zanier amazing movie, but it also was one of the first times I ever saw, like, a black lesbian at the center of a movie. And the movie is about her experience as a black lesbian and the experiences of other black lesbians. And like, I don’t know, going back to, like the topic of Disney, an autobiographical stories.

00:52:47:23 – 00:53:08:04

Unknown

You know, sometimes we need a movie just about being gay, you know what I mean? I’d love a Disney movie just about being gay because, like, my life, like I am a person, you know, I do exist, as you know, someone who I don’t know, I love making music. I’m trying to write like a screenplay right now. Like I love doing things like that.

00:53:08:09 – 00:53:29:23

Unknown

But I’m also gay, you know what I mean? And being gay impacts every facet of my life and will for the rest of my time being alive. You know what I mean? And so does being black, and so does being a man. And like, you know, you can’t really separate those specific parts of my identity from my view of the world because I’ve been that way since the beginning.

00:53:30:01 – 00:53:33:20

Unknown

So I don’t know. Yeah. Yeah.

00:53:33:20 – 00:53:57:06

Unknown

shout out to the organizations in SFB, Filipino youth organizations like Pica, doing a lot of great work right now and occupy and SFB, they just started you’re doing some great work like, yeah, you know, the those communities also taught me a lot about myself and the importance of solidarity, and allyship.

00:53:57:06 – 00:54:27:17

Unknown

Yes. And like going back to Multifaith that identities but like how important solidarity and, and allyship are, when it comes to interacting with people who are multifaceted. And so, yeah, thank you Filipinos. Well, and speaking of like, allyship and, being an advocate, how would you describe being an ally, an advocate for the queer community? Like what would you need to see, from us to know that you this is a safe space.

00:54:27:17 – 00:54:54:11

Unknown

So this is an intentional, safe space. Well, I recently Margaret Cho, she’s, Yeah. You guys know Margaret, so. Yeah, she recently came to my school, and I had the opportunity to speak with her briefly. And. Yeah, she’s. And I love Margaret Cho. I have seen Fire Island. Yeah, I’ve seen Fire Island seven times.

00:54:54:11 – 00:55:13:19

Unknown

That’s one of your movies. You think of Fire Island, whereas for me, she had a show on, like ABC where it was like a family comedy of all Asians. And I was just like, oh my gosh, just a bunch of Asians on TV. Like, that’s crazy to me. But yes, she played a pivotal role in Fire Island as well.

00:55:13:21 – 00:55:33:19

Unknown

Yeah. But we talked about, you know, just like when you see, upcoming artists and storytellers within the queer community, make sure that you give them attention and make sure that you spotlight them, even though even if they’re not, like, the biggest thing, you know what I mean? Like chaperon, like a chaperon. I think that’s how you see her name.

00:55:33:21 – 00:56:01:06

Unknown

But, she’s upcoming queer artist. Amazing music. She’s so cool. Right? If you see this, shout out, you know, hey, you know, I’d love to produce something for you if you’re interested. You know what I mean? But. Yeah, but she’s great. I love her, and spotlighting queer artists. You know, queer storytellers is so important.

00:56:01:06 – 00:56:19:12

Unknown

Especially if they’re indie. Especially if they’re, you know, just starting out. Because we all deserve the chance to and the opportunity to share our voices. And I think that is the best way to be an ally is just try to uplift as many voices as you can, just like Jody is doing her book. So yeah.

00:56:19:12 – 00:56:45:00

Unknown

to be honest, I think the first, first thing is to listen, you know, like, just having people that are willing to hear, to listen to, you know, instead of trying to step for and do like, like, can I sit down with the Disney Disney CEO and like, be like, okay, let me let me explain what this means.

00:56:45:00 – 00:57:09:01

Unknown

You know, like, having like there’s, there’s corporations, for instance, that during pride, they slap a rainbow on something and they sell it, you know, and that there’s corporations that like, they hire queer artists and they, they put out, you know what? What is ours, you know, and and they I mean, pretty much Michel, said amplify our voices.

00:57:09:01 – 00:57:37:12

Unknown

You know, they they instead of trying to speak for us, they listen and they are just out there essentially, so that people can hear our stories so they can understand. And, get a little like a little bit of comprehension and maybe also some of that fear, like find, you know, those stories maybe, like Luca, where we can find some intersection of relatability.

00:57:37:14 – 00:58:00:12

Unknown

Yeah. What I’m hearing is, you know, not just not just listening, but actively listening, like listening with the purpose. Because if you’re just listening and you’re hearing it, it goes in and the actions don’t match that, that’s not actually listening. Like, just kind of like how, we have multiple cultural representations that are wanting to be more seen in Disney.

00:58:00:14 – 00:58:27:11

Unknown

Platforms. The same thing with queer stories. If you’re going to tell a queer stories, have a queer person tell those stories, have a queer person write those stories, have a queer person put pen to the animation on these stories, because all of those things will shine through. And looping back to what we were talking about earlier, there’s so many things that are more powerful when unsaid and just shown, because people will feel that when they’re watching a Disney movie.

00:58:27:11 – 00:58:40:09

Unknown

And I think we can all agree that at any point in our time when we watch a Disney movie, and we felt very strongly about something, that’s when the storytelling is at its best, because we feel it. We’re not being told,

00:58:40:09 – 00:58:47:18

Unknown

Yeah. I think that’s like that embodiment of the phrase not about us without us and more than one in the room.

00:58:47:20 – 00:59:05:18

Unknown

Right. We don’t want someone to be the token representation of a community. So you need more than one in a room and you don’t want to tell a story that isn’t your story. Because when you are viewing a story from an outside perspective, unfortunately, you’re going to project a stereotype. You’re going to get nuance wrong.

00:59:05:19 – 00:59:08:02

Unknown

You’re going to missed so many things.

00:59:08:02 – 00:59:38:23

Unknown

There’s going to be so many ways in which the depth is lost. And so that’s why you have to have someone in the room. But it can’t be that one. Someone. It has to be more of them. And the person who’s leading and helming the project, we’ve talked about this before on the podcast, but it’s it can’t just be the people on the camera, the people working behind the scenes, the people animating, the people who are on set, the costume designers, all of these individuals are pivotal in the storytelling.

00:59:39:01 – 01:00:05:00

Unknown

And when you don’t have them in those multiple spaces, what we have is, a very flat, onerous, unwell, received project, that’s going to be more harmful than helpful. And that’s why Mulan, the live action movie, was not okay. I’m sorry, I’ll say it, but that’s why. Yes, bad. There weren’t enough Asian people behind the scenes writing the story.

01:00:05:02 – 01:00:22:23

Unknown

And yeah, you know, it just it didn’t do well. Yeah, it had the facade of being something that like you would see in Chinese cinema, but when you watched it, it was the highlights were all in the preview. And I’m like, what I yeah, yeah. Yes.

01:00:22:23 – 01:00:36:21

Unknown

that’s like when we were we haven’t talked about on the podcast because it was very disappointing. But Raya, the last Dragon, is about 18 different countries. You’re going to have that many diverse communities shoved into one movie.

01:00:36:21 – 01:00:57:22

Unknown

You’re not going to have the right representation. Like, and it was it was sad. It was sad to be like, this could have been a Filipino character, but also not all that to say, Jodie, can you tell us where to find your book? So for our listeners who are wanting to read it, I know we’ve talked a lot about it probably piqued a lot of folks interest in it.

01:00:57:22 – 01:01:37:21

Unknown

Where can we find it? Yeah, sure. So you can find it anywhere. In any major book retailer such as Amazon, Barnes Noble, your local indie bookstore, hopefully your library. We have a, like, a request. If you don’t find it at your library, please request it. Because one of the things that’s really important to us is that anyone who cannot afford this book, that they have the opportunity, the chance to get it any way that they can, but if you’re looking for a quick, easy reference, w w w we’re chair book.com.

01:01:37:23 – 01:01:56:16

Unknown

There’s lots of easy, quick buy links and reviews and all kinds of, cool resources as well. For any teens that are looking for parents or guardians between that are looking for, resources in just about anything in your life. Awesome. And shalom,

01:01:56:16 – 01:01:57:03

Unknown

Yeah.

01:01:57:03 – 01:02:28:14

Unknown

So I have a SoundCloud. I go by Voi Venus on SoundCloud. I make electronic music. Any of you listeners, if you are looking to make any indie video games or any film projects, I would love to score for you. I yeah, I love doing game scoring as well as film scoring. And also, I’m looking to finish a screenplay that I’m writing this summer, about three kids.

01:02:28:14 – 01:02:49:01

Unknown

So superpowers from space. And they’re an indie band together. It’s very Scott Pilgrim meets Steven Universe. Ask so yeah, again, boy violence on SoundCloud. I’m going to put my email on there in case any of you want to hit me up, but yeah. Yeah, that’s me

01:02:49:01 – 01:03:00:18

Unknown

All right. Okay, well, if you want to, DM us and let us know what you will be doing for this pride, go ahead at happiest Pod GT.

01:03:00:20 – 01:03:12:18

Unknown

You can find us both on IG and X. We want to thank our guests for joining us today. This was a wonderful conversation. And please support queer artists and queer work and let Disney know that

• Ariel and Eric (The Little Mermaid)
• Ursula
• Elsa (Frozen)
• Luca & Alberto
• Merida (Brave)
• Moana
• Lee Shang (Mulan)
• Peter Parker (Spider-Man)
• Clarabelle & Donald (Pride Night looks)
• Fire Island, Out (Pixar), Queer Cheer (book)

• Queer coding
• Identity formation
• Affirmations
• Intersectionality
• Disney villains
• Chosen family
• Representation vs tokenism
• Allyship & advocacy
• Pride events
• Cultural storytelling
• Diaspora & queerness
• Disney’s capitalism/activism tightrope