I'm not an "it," a "that," "nasty fag," I'm a human being.
I've been experiencing a lot more hate and discrimination from the general public lately. The other day I was told I didn't belong in the men's bathroom. Another day, I was on a train full of field trip going teenagers where I was blatantly made fun and spoken ill of. Another day I'm told I'm a nasty thing, and mocked as a "fuck up."
Perhaps this level of adversity has always been present, and I just haven't noticed? But regardless, I've been observing these negative actions to become more frequent. I always do my best to not let it bother me, but there are times when those backward minds and words eat at me, especially when I'm in a melancholy blackhole.
I can't help but feel so upset and frustrated in regards to how people can be ok with hating and attacking one another, especially from other minority groups.
Shouldn't we be in this together?
I will never understand how humans can be so vulgar and hateful to one another due to differences in our race, nationality, sexuality, religion and gender. We're all here in this world for a reason, so why must we invalidate one another's existence and make equality such an ordeal? At the end of the day, regardless of our backgrounds, we all have one thing in common, we're all human. With emotions, feelings, aspirations, obstacles, families, and friends just like everyone else.
With the rise of hate crimes due to an orange demon sitting in the White House, I just want to say something to all my fellow beautiful LGBTQ, gender nonconforming, misfits, outcasts, weirdos, aliens and unicorns, specifically the youth.
Be nice and support one another, we're all here on this earth fighting for equality, acceptance and representation. There is already so much hate in this world, we don't need it within our own community. So throw the shade and cattiness aside and love each other, because that's what we all need the most, considering the amount of adversity, hate, and violence our people face on a daily basis. Being trans, non-binary, queer, "different" is hard, but we mustn't let the negativity of others get to us. We must be strong, not just for ourselves but also for our people. We can't give into the oppression and must continue to live and express ourselves fearlessly. As our existence and presence will only help educate those unaware of this sector of humanity, which FYI, has existed since the birth of mankind. We're stronger together and it's our duty to build a happy future not just for ourselves but for future generations. One day, gender and sexuality won't be an issue, I just know it. Maybe not in our lifetime but we still have to push. So til then, let's all just be human together.
x D
Happy Pride month :)
Sashay and strut with flying colors.
PS. This t-shirt is very special. The amazing Everlane has partnered up with the equally awesome Human Rights Campaign for pride month. 100% of sales will be going straight to the HRC, so they can continue to fight for a better future for all. So get a super soft and cool new tee and support a great cause at the same time.
T-shirt: Everlane x Human Rights Campaign | Shorts: Vintage | Shoes: 3.1 Phillip Lim
Photography by Yvette Aispuro
Text Edited by Vitaly Usherenko