Queerness has a tricky relationship with invisibility; to be in the closet implies a paradoxical combination of safety and oppression. The closet offers a shield from the hostilities of homophobic society, but of course this comes at the excruciating cost of being able to move, freely and entirely, through the world. There has been pushback from within the queer community against the obligation of “coming out,” which can be seen as a spectacle performed for the heteronormative gaze. “Coming out” can also reinforce the idea that straightness is the baseline (i.e., people usually don’t feel
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