(tw: invalidation, aphobia, exclusionism) so I've seen a lack of projects about aphobia (like, i literally could find nothing) so I made one myself. Anyways, this is mainly about two main aphobic beliefs and why they're wrong. »»—————————- ➴ —————————-«« i. "people on the a-spec don't face discrimination" This is just false on so many levels. There are so many aphobes who believe the following: - that it's "abnormal" to experience attraction differently from how allos do - that people on the a-spec can be "fixed" - that people can't live a fulfilling/happy life without being in a romantic relationship - that people on the a-spec don't deserve recognition or to be part of the LGBTQ+ community - that being a-spec is a mental illness - that people who are aromantic and/or asexual are emotionless - that being aromantic and/or asexual is a choice - that people who come out as a-spec shouldn't be taken seriously - and many more Plus, there are many people on the a-spec (not all of them, though) who suffer from feelings of invalidation or internalized aphobia from being seen as "weird," or "abnormal," or having our allonormative society just casually invalidate their identities. There are people who may be overly rude to them simply because they don't experience attraction the same way, or because they want to be included in LGBTQ+ spaces. Also, the idea that people on the a-spec are "just straight" or that they're "too young to know any better" is very invalidating and offensive. (Of course, people who are heteroromantic-asexual or aromantic-heterosexual are still very a-spec and very queer, and also can experience aphobia too.) No, not all people on the a-spec experience attraction the same way or have the same experiences with their identity. But still, aphobia is real. »»—————————- ➴ —————————-«« ii. "people on the a-spec aren't LGBTQ+" People on the a-spec are members of the LGBTQ+ community, as they don't fit the definition of "allo," which is regularly being attracted to others or not being on the a-spec. Being on the a-spec is defined as experiencing attraction differently from how allos experience it. Allos aren't oppressed for being allo, while people on the a-spec don't have the same type of privilege. A similar exclusionist argument is that a-spec identities other than aromantic or asexual (meaning things like being demi, gray-aro/ace, or litho) aren't "actual orientations" because they're just "preferences" and that people on the a-spec are just "straight." This is ignoring that by this logic, all orientations are preferences. Also, being on the a-spec is described as experiencing attraction differently from allos, like i mentioned before. Since allos are privileged by being allo (even if they have other traits that are marginalized), people on the a-spec are queer for also being marginalized and in a minority, and experiencing attraction differently from those who are assumed to be "normal." While people on the a-spec can be cis or hetero, they're still queer. »»—————————- ➴ —————————-«« I don't know how to write outros but yeah i'm done talking. Sidenote, however: this specific project is about the a-spec as a whole, meaning people who are on the asexual spectrum and/or aromantic spectrum. The term "a-spec" is also sometimes used to include people who are agender, but the focus of this project is on aro- and ace-spec identities. I should probably add that I'm not trying to invalidate the experiences of people who are allo or anything, just trying to raise awareness of aphobia :)
