When George Michael died, my friend Michelle Brooks wondered if we are experiencing a queer rapture. Being previously Pentecostal I was rather familiar with the biblical story of the rapture. John was sent visions to warn humanity about their impending doom in the book of Revelations. Were we warned? What is a common thread throughout the book of Revelations? Seven. Seven stars, Seven trumpets, Seven churches. Shit is full of sevens. And who wrote a song called Seven? The motherfuckin’ queerest non-queer artist – Prince. We were warned of these trying times by a true saint among us.
In 1992, he recorded his visions sent down from the heavens to prepare us. ‘And I saw an angel come down unto me, in her hand she holds the very key, words of compassion, words of peace.’ Was Obama the key? Have not the last 4 years been full of words of compassion and peace? From Justice Kennedy’s closing remarks about the marriage equality case to Loretta Lynch’s fuck-you-HB2 press conference, we’ve found our little selves throwing glitter and laughing gayly. But just as Prince predicted there was, ‘in the distance an army’s marching feet.’ Armies of tea -partyin’-confederate-flag-wavin’ people so disgusted with peace and progress they created a demagogue to stop it.
And the election of this demagogue made us feel powerless. ‘And we lay down on the sand of the sea.’ The first punch they threw, ‘And before us animosity will stand and decree, That we speak not of love only blasphemy.’ While they declare our love and bodies unnatural, we gathered our strength and dusted that dirty sand off and strutted into the fight. We watched as, ‘in the distance, six others will curse ‘us’ (Mike Pence, Betsy DeVos, Jeff Sessions, Reince Priebus, Stephen Bannon and Gov. McCory).’ As our gender-bending, tight-pants-wearing mortals turn into angels, we steadied ourselves.
It is time to fight ‘With an intellect and a savoir-faire.’ During this Trump presidency ‘we will (most likely) see a plague and a river of blood.’ We may see rights disappear in that river and family lost to that plague. But ‘you and me will still be here we will still be here.’ With our our angels watching from above. We will survive because ‘No one in the whole universe will ever compare.’
And as we grieve, remember, ‘I am yours now and you are mine, And together we’ll love through all, Space and time’