People who argue that Sapphire and Ruby can’t be queer because of the gem’s lack of gender are missing the point. Last thursday a TV show watched by millions of children showed two female presenting characters in a romantic relationship. The ten or twenty percent of those kids who may be dealing with their own queer identities saw characters like themselves.
They saw the antagonist of the episode mocking a queer relationship and then being proved wrong.
They saw queer characters being empowered by their relationship.
They saw other characters being supportive of a queer relationship.
They saw a healthy queer relationship in comparison to an unhealthy one.
They saw a queer relationship meaning love and power instead of the usual queer narrative of death and sadness.
This is so much more important than any gem politics you want to use to hide your lesbophobia. Whether you read Sapphire and Ruby as nonbinary lesbians, gay, queer, or just an unnamed romantic relationship, this was still a big step forward that is one day going to mean a lot to some kid watching right now.
I like steven universe because no matter what minority someone is in, there is a stong character in the show to relate to.
It has strong Female characters
POC characters
Fat characters
Homosexual characters
Characters without a parent
Characters with a parent who’s barely there
Characters who lost someone
Characters who never knew someone who was supposed to be important
It is such a great show.