The LGBT community is a diverse one. United by a history of persecution and the hope of a better future, it is sometimes easy to forget that the LGBT movement is grounded by individuals and their wish for the most basic freedom: the freedom to be whoever they are and love whomever they wish without legal and societal interference. Our movement is only as strong as the individuals that wish for the day when we are equally recognized by the law; our movement, though collective, is inherently individual.
The LGBT community spans every race, religion, age, gender, ethnic group and geographic region; we are doctors, waiters, teachers and more. Chances are, we’re just about everywhere. And we need people to realize this: that we are them, that we are people. This tends to be forgotten in the political firestorms that so often surround our community. Legislators are not making laws regarding groups and organizations; they are making laws about individuals – about you (and me).
We need to introduce ourselves to the world. We need to have an individual – a person, a face, a story – for the world to see. We need to see you.
Starting today, Equality Texas will be collecting and sharing the stories of members of our LGBT community – including allies. Tell us about yourself: tell us about your childhood, how you came out, how you live today. Tell us what your dreams and failures are; share with us your most heartbreaking and heartwarming stories. Any kind of entry will be welcomed, be it an essay, a poem, a picture story or a video. You can submit anonymously or have your name and picture as big as our blog will allow.
By sharing your story with us, we hope to share your story with the world. Not only will it educate and introduce our community to those who do not know us, but your story will serve to inspire others within our community; chances are, we’ve all had some pretty similar – and challenging – experiences. But you’ve probably also had some incredible experiences, and we encourage you to
share those too.
Please, help us put a story and a person to the movement. Share your story with us so that we can share it with the world. The first story will be posted later today; after that, we’re depending on you to help keep this going.
Contact Mason at mason@equalitytexas.org for submissions, suggestions or questions. And if you need help forming a submission, feel free to ask.
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Posted by: Red Wing Stroes | March 14, 2012 at 08:12 PM