”I am a proud black gay man. At age 16 I decided to embrace my sexuality. I let the world know I was a man who was attracted to other men; I chose to no longer hide or fight who I truly am.” — Darriyhan, Atlanta
Showing 5 posts tagged national coming out day
“At the age of 16, I didn’t know non-binary, transgender, queer and blackness identities could co-exist with one another. At the age of 23 I am a representation of all those identities and I am proud, and liberated. Because I make my own journey, and folks choose to be apart of it or not but they can’t take what’s mine.” — Aidan, Philadelphia
“The 1st time I “came out” to my family & friends, I didn’t want to have the conversation in person. So, I posted my preferred name & my pronouns on Facebook. Fortunately, some showed their support by positively reacting to the post.
However, the post did not signal the end of my journey. I often use different pronouns, & I’m still not sure how I identify. Coming out is still a process for me. With support, I’ve learned that that’s okay.” - Tyunique, Philadelphia
Isa - Jackson, MS
Q: What’s something you would tell a non-binary person in Jackson, MS?
Isa: The words of my grandmother, my father’s mother, she asked me a very challenging questioning. [laughs] at 16 that gave me an existential crisis I wasn’t ready for, however I am very very very grateful for it which was to ask me when I came out as “gay” [heavy quotes]. She looked me directly into the eyes, and she asked “are you sure or is that something someone else told YOU that you were. Like are you gay or is it that someone else or whatever the term is, told you ‘oh well based on these things, this is what you are.’ And in that moment, because even 10 years ago language was not where it is now, I was like, well shit, if I’m not gay and I’m not straight then…oh gosh, now I have an existential crisis, and now I don’t know what to do, now I’m breaking down. Reality? What? Existence?
Interviewer: What did you need to hear in that moment?
Isa: I needed to hear that question. I needed to hear that question because on some level, I knew things. However it was that like, breaking that open. Now granted her motives for asking that question, I can probably think of some things. I don’t know if she had that intention, however the question itself, the power of that question and that family for me, overall has been, ‘we love you and we want you to live your best life means like, okay, don’t claim things that aren’t yours.”
Here is what @andiiviveros has to say about coming out.
“Hi there, my name is Andii Viveros and I’m part of YouthResource which is part of Advocates for Youth and today I just really want to talk to you about what coming out has taught me personally. I was going to go on about, you know, how like it helped me view things through other people’s perspective and to be more accepting of people, but I just really want to keep it real with you all and tell you that coming out has taught me that the only person I have to justify anything to or the only person I have to answer to is myself. And I feel like if you’re true to yourself, whether that be having a label for yourself, regardless of gender or sexuality, I feel like being open and honest with yourself is the best way for you to be happy and that’s what I really want to convey to you. And that’s #mystoryOUTloud. Muah!”
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