About things being too gay and why we think that’s too good
Normalized hostility towards the LGBTIQ+ community can often come unconsciously and unintentionally. How many times have you heard that something is “too gay”, implying that it is “too wrong”? We bet too many. As part of our goal to inspire change, we at Freepik are flying the flag against the discrimination implicit in microhomophobic expressions like this. Why?
- When you say “TOO GAY” and you mean too terrible, too backward, too alien, too embarrassing, or just too wrong you’d better think twice.
- When we hear “TOO GAY”, we should understand it as too bright, too colorful, too fun, too smart, too creative, or just simply “TOO GOOD”.
- The phrase “that’s too gay” is used as a casual homophobic microaggression. Some think it’s okay and they “don’t mean it in that way”. But it makes no difference, it’s still offensive and needs to be redefined in our vocabulary.
- Let’s be clear, saying “that’s too gay” with a negative connotation is not only harmful to the LGBTQIA+ community, but also to its allies. It creates hostility and triggers feelings of inadequacy and self-loathing in other human beings.
- In honor of LGBTQIA+ and its allies, Freepik wants to help to restore the original significance of the phrase “that’s too gay” because we don’t want anyone to think they need to hide in fear of discrimination.
- Anyone who identifies themself as gay deserves to be proud of being part of a community that is creative, innovative, smart, colorful, and brave.
- So, let’s bring back the original meaning of GAY! Coming from Old French, the word “gai” signified happy, colorful, bright, and that is the meaning we need to reclaim.
Time to redefine the use of “That’s too Gay”
What comes to mind when you hear that something is “too gay”? Well, that’s the key. You’ve probably thought of something “too colorful”, “too unusual”, or “too modern”. But is this necessarily a negative thing? We don’t think so.
It’s time to redefine how to use “That’s too Gay” when it comes to giving any feedback.
Are you up for shifting the negative connotation of the phrase from “too wrong” to “too good”? Then help us spread the word!
What does #TooGayTooGood mean? We show you in one collection
Pop art, retro, Y2K, psychedelic, glitches, photo compositions, cartoons, 3D… There are many design styles that could easily be labeled “too gay”, but why? Because they’re too creative, too bold, too colorful, too extra, too unusual, too modern, too daring… and they’re also TOO GOOD.
So we’ve put together a few in this collection to give you an idea of what we mean and why, when we say “too gay,” we mean “too good,” and you should, too.
When selecting the pieces to be included in the Too Gay, Too Good assets collection, we set a few parameters. All the pieces had to be out there, too exciting, ahead of their time, and most importantly, too good. We had a lot of fun putting this together and hope the idea speaks to you.
#TooGoodTooGay by Freepik Designers
Apart from the collection of amazing resources that we deem #TooGayTooGood, we’ve got something else for you. A full collection of digital designs for you to share and use as you wish on social media, your blog, and your website.
With over 30 options, you’ve got tons to work with.
Check out the collection now and share as much as you want!
Join us in the movement
We want to hear your thoughts, we want you to join the call to end this verbal and often unconscious aggression that is so normalized. Use the hashtag #TooGayTooGood to join the conversation and post your artwork, comments and thoughts on social media. Embrace the spirit behind this statement and stand up for the art that’s being called “too gay”.
Ready to turn off the negativity and turn on the positive connotations of being “too gay”? Stand up proudly for your “extra” style because it’s TOO GOOD and we love it.
We can’t wait to see what you have to say to inspire others as we move forward together on the path to freedom and equality.
