New column, The Jaded Optimist, introduces improved MainStream grounded in thoughtfulness, expression

Welcome to “The Jaded Optimist.” It’s my new column offering a peek at thoughts and experiences running this progressive, intersectionally aware, LGBTQ affirming publication and website, for six years now.

I am in love with the title of this column – so much, that I got my first-ever tattoo in 2021 to symbolize The Jaded Optimist! And though my first tattoo and this column both came years later than planned, the universe has a way: now more than ever, I believe, is a time for jaded optimism.

With Trump 2.0 right around the corner, and levels of gloom and anxiety running at record highs among the communities this publication serves, a lot of us are feeling fear or at least wariness about what’s coming with the next presidential administration. The recent news of a possible Trump executive order removing transgender people from the military (denied by the incoming administration) is leaving the LGBTQ+ community especially scared.

Threats of mass deportation are sending chills down the spines of many People of Color. Cabinet nominees whose records are unduly dotted with sexual harassment allegations are leaving women fearful of what that might mean for actual policies. And these are just a few areas of concern that many are scrambling to prepare for.

It can seem like the world as we know it is threatened, that hard-fought rights are in danger. Understandably, everywhere I turn, I see calls to ready for “the fight.” 

 

MainStream to offer different tools in pursuit of social justice

Amid this context, I’m eager to offer a different kind of salve with The Jaded Optimist, and with all of the changes to the new and improved MainStream (formerly The Real Mainstream). Here, and in MainStream,’s website and print magazine, you’ll find a constant focus on preserving hope and finding solutions even while confronting and surviving injustice, disappointment and heartbreak.

 

 

Some changes we started more than three months ago have become especially timely, and important:

• Starting this week, MainStream is moving into a public headquarters, from its former home in my house.
• Our shorter name (MainStream) and website address (main-stream.org) get right to the point and help convey some founding concepts of this publication: that we are truly all in this together, and that LGBTQ+ affirmation and intersectional awareness are the norm, dominant, and “mainstream.”
• We have a new slogan to help convey the spirit of the revitalized MainStream: Compassion + Context + Critical Thinking = Common Ground.
• This new slogan will shape our coverage, and guide us in striving for more caring coverage, and also a drive to transcend ideology whenever possible.
• We’ll also begin offering more expansive puzzles and fun exercises, online and in print, to build critical thinking and media literacy muscles.
• At our new headquarters, we’ll begin offering classes and events that focus on communication, critical thinking, media literacy, and ethics — starting with the Beyond Beliefs discussion group you can find more about later in this column.
• And we will jump right in, responsibly and with compassion, to the toughest issues relevant to LGBTQ+ people, BIPOC people, and other challenged identities. We’ll take up difficult and complex conversations, some of which will demand re-examination of even our own assumptions. We’re already doing this in many ways, with special sections devoted to HIV awareness and treatment, cannabis research and policy, and the multi-faceted work of The Project of the Quad Cities to serve challenged identities. Expect more, on topics including transgender rights and research, police brutality, entrepreneurship, mental health and more.  

These are all efforts not to duplicate what’s already being done out there in “the fight,” but to offer something more to the effort.

Right now, communities of challenged identities are overflowing with activist and political leaders. You’ll find the activist approach among leaders today of our nonprofits, places of faith, bars, newspapers and news websites, and more. You’ll even find the activist approach in a lot of mainstream (in the traditional sense) media today, many of which began years ago unquestioningly following our activist leaders’ talking points with good intentions.

In this context, our communities don’t need yet another activist leader, or yet another P.R. machine for “marginalized identities” (a term you may have already noticed we are replacing with “challenged identities”), or another voice singing mostly to the choir.

Choosing those paths would be the easiest way to profit and popularity; as one of my mentors said, “it’s definitely a business model.” But it’s not the business model or path for this publication.

Thoughtfulness, quality discourse, expression, and jaded optimism: foundations of the new MainStream

The new and improved MainStream aspires, instead, to add greater dimension and depth to not only others’ activist work, but other kinds of work among challenged identities. It’s my wish that the greater dimensions we crack open will also impact how we connect to each other. Toward these goals. MainStream will better hold physical, mental and emotional space for:

• Thoughtfulness: Expect new events (like our new Beyond Beliefs discussion group), audio-visual segments, and more published pieces that encourage frank discussions, exploration of complexities, and conversations about responsibilities along with rights. You might call it a version of Jools LeBron’s  “mindful and demure” in philosophy form. Or you might call it a Stoic approach to activism, where universal truths rather than political goals or rights drive the discussion, ethics matter as much as beliefs, and there’s always a nice shot of self-examination for balance.
• Quality Discourse: In a world increasingly dominated by memes, quick hits, algorithmic posting on social media, and over-simplified “if, then” pronouncements, we’ll do all we can to keep alive the essential traditions of good information-gathering and useful discussion. These include good sourcing; “expanding on” rather than simply amplifying; debating and sometimes dissenting; and clarifying (or preserving) gray areas where possible. This will mean more intentional word choice, deeper and more interviews, and again, new classes and programs.
• Expression: Independent artists have always been a top priority of this publication, and they’ll become even more so now. Look forward to greater coverage and publicity of independent musicians, visual artists, filmmakers, and writers, including some of them teaching and offering their wares in our new space. By 2025, we’ll also revive another form of expression: our “mature” section, focused largely on kink and fetish interests.
• And yes, that Jaded Optimism. This will mean providing context to the experiences of challenged identities to honor what others before or different than us have experienced. We’re newly committed to generating and supporting efforts that help us transcend setbacks and their pain, rather than those that rely on setbacks and pain to inspire or solicit unity.

Renewed commitment to better coverage of activist efforts, too

I also want to offer a commitment to those activists leading the fight, and to readers. Even while we flesh out the dimensions above and broaden the discussion beyond catchphrases,  rallying cries, and heartstring tugs, I want you to know that I and we will do better covering the nitty gritty hard work of your activism, and of news developments overall.

Two hands aren’t enough fingers to count the many different ways we’ve started, then stopped, trying to fulfill this goal since we began in December 2018. Or the many stories I’ve started yet not completed to the point of timely publication, sometimes leaving bitterness, disappointment and missed opportunities for others in my wake.

We’ve also done little to promote this publication, focused during the years since COVID on rebuilding and surviving rather than thriving. And clearly, we’ve been nearly absent on social media.

All of this can convey a sense of not caring, when the truth is this publication and website is my life’s passion and something I feel honored and humbled to spend 70-plus hours a week on. As we step into our public space, I’m committed to clean up as many leftover piles as possible from previous eras of overwhelm.

MainStream is also newly re-focused on involving others more in this effort. To do that, we’ll be promoting MainStream more, and doing other things to earn more support, because writers, photographers and other kinds of contributors to the improved MainStream deserve more than ever to be adequately compensated.

So, if you’ve been disappointed in previous coverage from the publication formerly known as The Real Mainstream; felt under-covered or under-represented, or misunderstood; believe we could be doing more and better; we will do better. In particular, if you’re a BIPOC community member or reader feeling like we haven’t really fulfilled our intersectional promise, we will do better. I sincerely hope you’ll give MainStream that chance. 

Timely community tidbits, defining moments, other jaded optimists are part of what’s coming

Coming up in this space,  you’ll read some fascinating background about the people, places and groups we cover. You’ll get a peek at the challenges and experiences MainStream faces traversing among and between the subcultures of challenged identities and the mainstream. You’ll learn about some challenges I, we and others have overcome since December 2018 when we began publishing.

You’ll learn about and hear from other jaded optimists.  I hope to offer some insights into my own 40-plus years of journalism experience — for instance, revisiting how one of the biggest stories of my career even now, a series of pieces in 1992 for the Chicago Tribune about what was then called “gay-bashing,”  impacted me in ways that shape this publication today.

 

 

You might also appreciate reading about why certain coverage decisions are made, or be inspired to share your views on why a different decision should have been made. You’ll read about word choices that reject the slithering concepts of euphemism, slanted language, spin and conflict exploitation.

Whatever the topic each week, I aim for this column and all that you’ll find in the new MainStream to be a grounding, sustaining and stimulating source of thoughtful hope, seasoned with a perspective that comes only after years of disappointments along with triumphs, and of constantly redefining both.

 

Beyond Beliefs discussion group starts Jan. 18, 19 and 20

Want to begin partaking of this vibe now?  You can sign up for our new Beyond Beliefs hybrid discussion group, an opportunity for those hungry and thirsty for new tools in pursuit of social justice to find fulfillment.

Through this monthly gathering, we’ll consciously dwell in the thoughtful aspects of activism. We’ll talk about social justice in the context of ethics, morals and potential solutions rather than mostly winning and losing rights, or airing and soothing grievances. We’ll have open and challenging discussions about purpose, process, principles and more. 

The gatherings don’t start until Jan. 18, 19 and 20 (you can choose from three slots). But if you sign up this year, you can get started with prompts, suggested reading lists, and more.

Looking ahead, next week’s column will offer you the hours and address for our new public headquarters, a peek at the space, more about future plans, and current-day tidbits about some newsmakers throughout Illinois and Iowa.

Sometime soon, we’ll delve into a list of possible topics to be covered in this column. I’m pretty sure you’ll feel challenged in some way by the list. Before the end of the year, you’ll hopefully meet our first guest facilitator for Beyond Beliefs.

In addition to signing up for Beyond Beliefs, here’s something else you can do to engage: become a subscriber/member of MainStream. It’s under $40, once a year, and you’ll receive the print edition in the mail each month, plus access to our new critical thinking and media literacy online “games” section.

Plus, you’ll help support MainStream‘s work, which means supporting everyone we cover or feature in our directories, calendars and more.

I hope you’ll join me with the weekly Jaded Optimist, and MainStream overall. It will be a trip within a trip. Especially if you’re unsure of or even offended by the approach you’re reading about here, I hope you’ll engage in some way. After all, The Jaded Optimist is inviting you. I get why you might be skeptical. 😉 

‘Til next week.