Representation is extremely important in all aspects of life for minority and historically underrepresented communities, but recently I have been noticing a new form of representation that has me banging my head against the nearest wall. I have taken to calling this form of representation: LGBTCIA.
Over the summer I kept getting advertisements for the military, the CIA and the police. In the past, these types of advertisements all focused around recruiting “manly men” to fight for “American values.” But, these commercials were different.
These commercials focused on recruiting “girlbosses,” young people who cannot afford college and minority groups.
While I am excited that groups that used to be shut out from these organizations are now being invited in, representation will not fix their problems. For example, the first all-gay helicopter crew in the Navy flew in April, but that crew is still a part of a military group that allowed Edward Gallagher to commit war crimes and go charge-free even after he was reported.
Just because the people who are now perpetrating American imperialism or destabilizing other governments are representing minority groups, does not mean that those things are no longer problems that need to be addressed.
An increase in representation does not mean that any given problem is fixed. In the Senate, representation is extremely important in passing legislation that the people want and that helps Americans. That being said, there are people like Candace Owens, a conservative political and social commentator, who may provide surface representation for Black women, yet wholeheartedly rails against movements like Black Lives Matter and believes that Black people have a “victim mentality.”
In the case of LGBTCIA, the CIA is still actively dismantling other countries that the American government does not agree with. No matter who is pulling the metaphorical trigger on these heinous actions, it is wrong.
I celebrate having people of color, LGBTQIA+ community members and all minorities in positions of power, but those positions of power still cause harm to minorities and the most vulnerable communities in the world. While I would be happy to see a queer Black woman as the head of an organization like the CIA, I would still be critical of their decision to run a historically destructive and terrible organization.
The systematic issues that we face in the United States, even systematic racism, cannot simply be fixed by representation. Representation is just having people in positions of power who are part of a usually underrepresented group, but they can then become the ones who are shutting the door to their own people.
This is the problem with Mayor Pete Buttigieg, who is gay but still reinforces and sides with a system that has historically and even currently marginalizes and refuses to acknowledge LGBTQ+ people.
We must instead reform institutions that are systematically harmful while increasing representation. Without doing both, our society will continue to harm people in minority communities as well as America at large.
So, next time you see an ad recruiting you to the CIA or military with the promise of representation and diversity, remember that they are still doing wrong with a tinge of neo-liberal ideology included.