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‘It Felt Amazing’ after Sikh man took off turban, cut hair, came out as gay
Mandeep Jangi of Middlesex, New Jersey, cites his Sikh faith as the “more visible aspect” of his identity. His decision to cut his hair (long hair is a traditional part of Sikh culture) was the first step to discovering his own individual identity. However, after his haircut, Mandeep could sense that something still wasn’t exactly right. He felt a sense of uneasiness that he traced back…
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Participating in Dyke March as a child gives lesbian confidence later in life
Do you remember your first Pride event? Kayleigh certainly does, along with the impact that participating in Dyke March with her family had on her life. Young Kayleigh took a trip to San Francisco with her extended family. Kayleigh describes this particular trip: “It happened to be Pride in San Francisco. We found ourselves in the route of Dyke March …
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Brit beats back years of depression by finding gay friends and community
What was your first impression of the gay community? For Tom Wicker of Lewes in East Sussex in the United Kingdom, it was illness, death, and filth. Tom recalls an advertisement he saw when he was just five years old: “It was of a stormy, volcanic landscape with lightning in the background and an enormous tombstone, which, I later learned, had the word “AIDS” …
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Keith Levy on the creation, ups and downs of his drag persona Sherry Vine
What drives a person to perform in drag? Keith Levy, also known as a drag queen by the name of Sherry Vine (check out her YouTube channel here), is here to give us his life story as an answer. For Keith, a single song inspired him to change his life course from acting to drag. It all began with Ella Fitzgerald’s “Black Coffee.”
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How punk music and feminism changed a young life
Rudy Garcia of East L.A. says that when he was young, he never quite felt like the “normal” kid. Although his migrant parents pressured the youngest of their eight children to be the embodiment of the American dream, Rudy was more interested in punk-rock music, feminism, and ‘zine culture. “Everything that I was into was also very not received well by my family…
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Mathew Shurka on his years in conversion therapy, and forgiving his father
New Yorker Mathew Shurka came out at the age of 16 to his initially supportive father, who promised to love his son no matter what, and to always stay by his son’s side. However, his father’s thinking became more and more influenced by homophobia and harmful stereotypes surrounding the gay community. Thus began some of the most tumultuous …
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How one gay student stood up to his homophobic counselor
If you were looking for an example of how to be a horrible college mental health counselor, look no further. Nephi Niven was physically ill and depressed from keeping his sexuality a secret and did what many young gay people do: He sought help. This is Nephi’s true LGBTQ story…
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‘My religious identity is as important to me as my sexual identity’
John Russell Stanger is the first openly gay Presbyterian minister ordained in Texas. And his path toward being ordained began very, well, gay…
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‘I want people to know that there’s not one type of love…’
Kids these days… Tyunique Nelson was struggling with parts of her life. Through her struggles she found some peace with Alex, a new person she met at school.
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Lesbian rapper shares a tribute to her gay uncle
What is it about gay uncles that makes them almost universally awesome? For Monique Contreras, front lead rapper for a duo called Icy Lytes, it was the fact that her gay uncle was someone she could confide in.