The Pink Stripe

by Sol Kim Cowell

believe me when i say

we are older than the

tongue that licks sweet

jammy nothings against

your teeth. we are the

thyrsus pressed against

soft pink flesh, the coupling

of falcon and sha, the green

petals gently unfurling

against brushing lips.

we are the brothers

and the fathers

and the husbands

and the sons.

we are the lovers

and the dreamers

and the writers

and the lost.

forget us, detest us, and

you forget yourselves,

for there is no history

without us and there

is no future without

love.

For 84 years, sex between two consenting adult men has been criminalised in Singapore under Section 377A of the penal code. On 21 August 2022, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong announced the government's intentions to repeal Section 377A. This could not have been possible without the countless activists who raised their voices and spoke against this injustice, but the fight is not over: in 2020, 69 UN member States still criminalised consensual sex between same-sex adults. One less is not zero, but it's closer to a future where we don't have to fight for who we love.

— Sol Kim Cowell

Sol Kim Cowell is a transmasc mixed British-Korean writer and local café regular. He writes about the convergence of mental illness, sexuality, and cultural heritage. At his doljanchi, he picked up the pencil, and he hasn't put it down since. He can be found online at skcpoet @ Twitter, Tumblr, and Ko-fi (the latter for tips). All his active profile links are on https://solkimcowell.carrd.co/.