Hello sassy people! Today’s post is about Refusing Compulsory Sexuality by Sherronda J. Brown!
Refusing Compulsory Sexuality
by Sherronda J. Brown
For readers of Ace and Belly of the Beast: A Black queer feminist exploration of asexuality—and an incisive interrogation of the sex-obsessed culture that invisibilizes and ignores asexual and A-spec identity.
Everything you know about sex and asexuality is (probably) wrong.
The notion that everyone wants sex—and that we all have to have it—is false. It’s intertwined with our ideas about capitalism, race, gender, and queerness. And it impacts the most marginalized among us. For asexual folks, it means that ace and A-spec identity is often defined by a queerness that’s not queer enough, seen through a lens of perceived lack of pleasure, connection, joy, maturity, and even humanity.
In this exploration of what it means to be Black and asexual in America today, Sherronda J. Brown offers new perspectives on asexuality. She takes an incisive look at how anti-Blackness, white supremacy, patriarchy, heteronormativity, and capitalism enact harm against asexual people, contextualizing acephobia within a racial framework in the first book of its kind. Brown advocates for the “A” in LGBTQIA+, affirming that to be asexual is to be queer—despite the gatekeeping and denial that often says otherwise.
With chapters on desire, f*ckability, utility, refusal, and possibilities, Refusing Compulsory Sexuality discusses topics of deep relevance to ace and a-spec communities. It centers the Black asexual experience—and demands visibility in a world that pathologizes and denies asexuality, denigrates queerness, and specifically sexualizes Black people.
A necessary and unapologetic reclamation, Refusing Compulsory Sexuality is smart, timely, and an essential read for asexuals, aromantics, queer readers, and anyone looking to better understand sexual politics in America.
Wow.
This book was eye opening. To the traumas I have livened, as an ace spec, demisexual, bisexual, latinx woman, and hadn’t realized came from being ace in an allo world.
But mostly about the black experience of sexuality, the expectations and scripts we as a society put onto entire communities.
It also made me realize the script put into other communities, such as Latinx people, and how huge the sexuality of our people is the first thing that comes to mind when people talk about us.
As Brazilians, we have been asked about our buts, our bikinis and beaches and if we’re abroad, of the prostitution we’re said to do.
The dominance and control of female bodies. The horrifying, but very present reality that a lot of ace people had been SAed, and why. Not just a coincidence.
It is horrifying, but so validating, to see aspects of my own experience, trough the lens of asexuality, in a way I had never before.
These and a lot more were the life changing, eye opening, realizations this book has brought me.
Well, that is all for today, I hope you like this post, hope you enjoy this book as much as I did. Feel free to leave your opinion about it in the comments and I will see you next time!
Bye sassy people!
- I know that some comments I make about decent guys on my posts are the bare minimum a guy should do, so no, they don’t deserve to be treated like gods for doing the minimum, but at the same time, I’ve read a lot of sexist books and I appreciate authors who make characters that can serve as role models and examples of how a decent guy acts and what a loving and respectful relationship looks like. I believe we should always encourage these authors and bring attention to the ones that still write sexist characters and stories.
- I make a lot of comments about sexism and healthy role models in books, but a lot of times these characteristics don’t make the book a bad book and definitely don’t make the author a bad author. Please never shame these authors and these books for these comments, I simply feel that we need to have awareness of the less than ideal situations some books bring us, and not use the romanticized problem as examples of what a relationship should be. Most of these authors are still amazing, and the content they write doesn’t reflect directly with their personal views and opinions. Always make sure to respect and be kind to everyone, even while criticizing their content.
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Brazilian architecture student and book lover
One of my goals in analysing my readings was to talk about important topics, like feminist and consent, because literature, art and culture influence us, and I believe we should always encorage authors who talk about this topics.
Goodreads Reading Challenge 2023
I read 125 books in 2023! come see them!
Goodreads Reading Challenge 2022
I read 174 books in 2022, come see them!
Goodreads Reading Challenge 2021
I read 106 books in 2021, come see them!
Goodreads Reading Challenge 2020
I read 155 books in 2020, come see them!
