Fluid
By: Uday Birdi, Rachel Chau, Michelle Le, Luc Lorain, Victoria Luu
A deep dive into the effects of EDCs on gender and the environment
“They’re turning the friggin frogs gay!”
Yes. These are the words spewed out by Alex Jones, conservative talk show host for the infamous InfoWars. It’s easy to observe the palpable farce from this tirade (not to mention the strong notes of homophobia and transphobia in this rant). Yes reader, what he says is discriminatory. It is homophobic. It is sensationalized…
But, to some extent, there is some truth in this act.
We, humans, face dire consequences with the pollution of EDCs in our periphery. Yet, the damage diverges from environmental harm and extends into the perpetuation of structural violence against females and LGBTQIA+ communities. Referring to intersex species as “males that have been demasculinized or feminized” connotes these morphological changes as abnormal from a cisheteronormative narrative that has been reinforced across generations. Inducing these changes in aquatic animals, birth control medication have been thrusted into the limelight of blame. What is more alarming is that scientific literature laced with this transphobic and cisheteronormative tone is being used to insinuate the replication of these changes in human populations. But there is no scientific evidence to date to suggest this phenomenon. But Alex Jones and conservative media pundits have fabricated science to extend the heteronormative standard to their viewers.
Yet all hope is not lost. We must hold scientific, political, and corporate institutions accountable in hopes of solving this biological and social harm. But we can’t just give a vague idea of what we need, so we invite you to explore this issue further with us. Let’s examine the chemical changes brought about by EDC pollution, the enforcement of hetero(eco)normatovity, problems of political regulation and gendered scientific pollution. Let’s leap into the issue with the spirit of resolution.
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