Jaded, Bitter, and Queer is a protest song. It is a piece rebelling against cisgendered (“cis.”) and heterosexual (“het.”) norms that dictate the behaviour of all members of our society, despite the advances made in gender equality. While many women have made strides towards equality, the battle of equality for all women has yet to be won. Then, the folks like me, who exist outside of the man/woman binary, are barely just beginning to attain visibility, let alone equality. The fight for equality of all genders is still relatively young, and often creates many limits and frustrations for those who are not cis./het. men.

This piece exists to express these frustrations. Many queer people have felt similar frustrations as I do, especially in the past decades, where male homosexuality – for but just one example – was sometimes equated with wanting to be a woman, which was seen as a deep insult. Of course, femininity is not a flaw at all. There’s nothing wrong with a man having more stereotypical “fem.” expression of their gender, and still being a man. All expressions of gender are valid and beautiful in their own way. Yet the prejudice against people outside the binary continues.

Jaded, Bitter, and Queer was commissioned for the 2023 Queer Arts Festival in Vancouver, Canada, and intended to take inspiration from Claude Vivier on the 40th anniversary of his passing. Vivier, a queer man, was murdered for his sexuality. I can’t help but feel that were he still alive, he would be as outspoken about sexuality and gender as I hope this piece is.