teratomarty:

It’s called the 10% discount!

Dating back to the publication of the Kinsey Report, which said that one person in ten had homosexual experience, “ten percent” became a byword for queer. It was one of several, like “friend of Dorothy” or “one of ours” before the term “gay” came into widespread use. If you worked in customer service, you might acknowledge your kinship with such other queers as came through by giving them a 10% discount on their bill, along with a nod and a wink.

I’ve both given and gotten the 10% discount, though it was a lot easier before computerised cash registers. Words cannot express the simultaneous shock and reassurance of having someone see me for who I really am, back before I came out. I had what I believed to be a massive, dire secret, and not only did some random clerk know it by looking at me, but she didn’t mind! She approved, and was willing to essentially give me money.

In today’s foul political climate, I’d love to see a resurgence of the 10% discount. Maybe not for me; I live in a good city and I’m doing ok. But certainly for people in small towns, people who are isolated or who can’t afford to come out. Look after each other.