![]() ![]() In her recent book Ace: What Asexuality Reveals About Desire, Society, and the Meaning of Sex, journalist Angela Chen argues that ace liberation could help everyone by deconstructing sexual and romantic normativity. Some Facebook groups exist but with shifting seasons of activity and lull.īy making this documentary I wanted to emphasise the fluidity and spectrum of sexuality – that it’s not a binary of asexual or allosexual, that love can be valid in multiple other forms, that a progressive sex-positive society can and should make room for those who tend to find sex less relevant too.Īnd it does feel like ace discourse is gaining momentum and visibility. Particularly in Aotearoa, ace communities are small and mostly online. And maybe that’s the reason the “ace community”, more than most communities, exists less cohesively and less collected as a “community”. These individuals have complex lives with a range of different passions, and most said that being on the ace spectrum wasn’t the defining element of their lives – a lack of something rarely is. All of this serves to show that there’s not just one model of what asexuality looks like. There are people in relationships, people with kids, people with disabilities. Within this documentary, there are asexual voices, aromantic voices, demisexual, panromantic, heteroromantic, gay, queer, takatāpui, non-binary, and trans voices. So many stories and experiences felt relatable, and it was hard to only hone in on a few voices to highlight. Having the initial research conversations with the people who responded to the callout was eye-opening and validating. Making this documentary has helped with that. Am I just making this up? How can I know for sure how I feel? Am I making a big deal out of something that really doesn’t impact my life that much? Will I one day feel differently and all of this will feel like a mistake to have talked about? In other contexts, all the self-doubt and questioning will come flooding back. Still, it’s easier to say in certain contexts than others that I feel queer, ace, or on the asexual spectrum. Nothing delegitimises you, and no one is forced to stick to the same labels forever. It’s also fine to identify with the labels for a period and then move on. There is little gatekeeping and anyone who finds the labels helpful in any way is welcome to them. Generally, the answers on forums are incredibly supportive and welcoming. Online ace forums are full of questions from people wondering whether asexuality and the spectrum it encompasses is for them. ![]() In fact, a defining part of asexuality seems to be questioning whether you are. It’s also possible to know the terminology and still not know if it applies to you. It’s entirely possible to be ace and not know the terminology. People may identify as aromantic (not feeling romantic attraction towards anyone), heteroromantic (feeling romantic attraction towards people of the opposite gender), homoromantic (feeling romantic attraction towards people of the same gender), panromantic (feeling romantic attraction to people irrespective of gender), and so on. People may feel romantically attracted to certain people but not sexually attracted, or vice versa. There is also a split between sexual attraction and romantic attraction. There can be sex-repulsed, sex-neutral, and sex-favourable aces. The spectrum of asexuality can include greysexual (those who only experience sexual attraction rarely or at a very limited level), demisexuality (those who only experience sexual attraction after an emotional bond is formed), akiosexual (having sexual/romantic feelings but not wanting to act or having those feelings reciprocated), aegosexual (those who may get aroused by sexual content but do not desire a sexual relationship for themselves in real life), and many more. An asexual person is defined by AVEN (Asexuality Visibility and Education Network) as “a person who does not experience sexual attraction”, but the website also acknowledges that “there is a broad spectrum between end points of ‘asexual’ and ‘very sexual’ with differing levels of sexuality.” There are inconsistencies, interruptions, conflicts, and many people find themselves identifying within the grey. ![]() Sexuality is not a straight line from homosexuality to heterosexuality, and nor is there a straight line between asexuality and allosexuality – the term used for someone who experiences sexual attraction. These are just some of the thoughts shared by people who responded to the documentary callout for Ace of Hearts. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |