Introduction: Flipping the Script on ‘Identity Politics’
¿Identity oppression? For decades, we’ve heard the same tired refrain: identity politics are divisive, identity politics are dangerous, identity politics are tearing society apart.
But here’s the truth they don’t want to face: identity oppression isn’t born from the existence of minority groups—it’s created by the so-called “normal” majority that decided those identities were a problem in the first place.
No minority—whether defined by race, gender, sexuality, religion, or disability—organizes politically just to be different. They do so because their differences were politicized by others. Because someone, somewhere, decided they didn’t belong in the invisible club of “normal people.”
The Illusion of Normality and the Machinery of Exclusion
“Normal” isn’t a natural state—it’s a political invention.
Those who claim the privilege of normality enjoy a silent monopoly: the power to exist without explanation, to move through the world without being questioned, to see themselves reflected everywhere without effort.
The majority’s comfort depends on one thing: invisibility of the other. The moment the marginalized step into the light—when they live openly, celebrate who they are, or demand equal treatment—this comfort cracks.
And so, the narrative flips. Pride becomes “provocation.” Visibility becomes “aggression.” And diversity becomes a “threat to social cohesion.”
Identity Politics Are a Reaction, Not the Cause
There’s a hard truth here:
Without the stigma created by the majority, there would be no need for political identities. Queer people wouldn’t need Pride if being queer wasn’t treated as shameful. Black communities wouldn’t need movements for racial justice if whiteness hadn’t been constructed as the invisible standard.
The oppressed didn’t start the game—they were drafted into it. And the rules are rigged:
- Rule 1: We’ll decide what’s normal.
- Rule 2: If you don’t fit, stay quiet.
- Rule 3: If you speak up, we’ll call you divisive.
This isn’t democracy. This is an oligarchy of the “normal”, and it’s time to call it out for what it is.
Freedom, Modernity, and the Right to Happiness
Every modern democracy claims to uphold freedom, equality, and the pursuit of happiness. But these aren’t abstract ideals—they demand the right to live as you are, without fear of punishment, exclusion, or erasure.
When the so-called normal majority demands silence from others, they are not defending freedom—they are defending their monopoly on it.
They are telling the rest of us: We own the definition of happiness. We own the definition of dignity. We own the definition of freedom.
But here’s the radical truth: freedom doesn’t belong to a type of person—it belongs to all people. And democracy, if it means anything, must protect the right to exist visibly, authentically, and unapologetically.
From Shame to Pride
The unspoken message is always: Hide who you are, and we’ll leave you alone. But pride flips the equation: Show who you are, and we will dismantle the shame they trained us to feel.
When minorities claim their identities with joy and dignity, they are not “asking for special treatment.” They are reclaiming their human right to be visible. Pride is not the opposite of humility—it is the opposite of humiliation.
The Real Oppression We Must Name
The real oppression is not that minorities exist—it’s that the majority has the audacity to think it can decide who gets to be normal. That is the ultimate identity oppression.
When we strip away the rhetoric, it’s clear:
- It’s not trans people who threaten freedom—it’s those who legislate their invisibility.
- It’s not immigrants who divide society—it’s those who draw borders around humanity.
- It’s not queer love that corrupts morality—it’s those who deny love the dignity of equality.
A Call to the Majority—And to Ourselves
To those who see themselves as “normal”: your comfort is not more sacred than someone else’s right to exist. The modern world cannot be built on the erasure of difference—it must be built on the celebration of it.
To those living under the label of “minority”: remember this—your identity is not the problem. The problem is the cage they built around it. Break it. Walk out. Exist in daylight.
Conclusion: Pride as Democracy’s Pulse
Democracy dies when normality is a weapon.
It thrives when the definition of “we” expands—when freedom stops being the privilege of a few and becomes the shared condition of all.
The task of our time is not to erase identity—it is to erase the hierarchy of normality.
And the only way to do that is to meet shame with pride, silence with speech, and erasure with unapologetic existence.
Because the only identity oppression worth naming is deciding who gets to be normal. And we’re done letting anyone else decide that for us.
