I'm queer, but I /hate/ how pathetic the queer community is online
Obviously throwaway because this is going to piss off people. Maybe this take makes me a bad person but at this point I don't really care.
I'm a queer person- I've known this about myself since middle school and I was the first person to come out in my grade. I've volunteered at LGBTQ centers, GSA, parades, basically all of the activities to advocate for queer rights.
I also spend a lot of time in different online spaces, social media platforms, and follow a lot of creators that are queer.
Lately it feels like every other person is using their queer identity as a thin veil to scam others. They beg people to donate to their GoFundMe, or to send them cash through PayPal because they can't get a job. I read the same story over and over again- "I'm a disabled mentally-ill queer ____ who has no job and can't afford to pay the bills." or "I left my job due to mental health factors and now need support to live." It's always some sob story about how their life is horrible and how they're too mentally ill and queer to function properly in society. A lot of bad choices being made by really immature adults.
But because they use the terminology of being "queer" and "disabled" people eat that shit up and donate without even fact-checking. Obviously it's a broad claim to say that /most/ of these donation campaigns are based half-truths, but that's what my gut tells me.
I'm a queer person, I've dealt with mental health issues and it fucking sucks. I was unemployed at one point and had to use government benefits to see a psychiatrist. Yet, I never thought it was okay to use my identity to take money from others. I didn't parade myself online and call myself a "mentally ill queer person" for some kind of clout. I worked on my issues and got my shit together because that's what being an adult means.
I think it's pathetic how these people have become so comfortable e-begging for stuff that isn't even a necessity, like fast food and video games on their Steam wishlist. I wish I was making this up, but it's become a pandemic in so many online spaces that I have to block the people that enable this kind of behavior.
I've brought this topic up with my friends and they think I'm being too harsh and judgemental over people I'm supposed to be supporting. But is baby-ing them and throwing money their way /really/ going to teach them a lesson?
I want to hear other people's opinions, especially if they're active in queer spaces.