Inspiring Stories

5006 – Kristen Cooper

I always knew I was different from most of my peers. I couldn't pinpoint what it was for a long time, but I never quite felt "a part of." It all hit me with 100% certainty when I fell in love with my best friend in 8th grade. Up until that point, I was boy crazy. From preschool on I had one boyfriend after another. I did genuinely have Continue reading

5041 – Dominique Chatterjee

Coming out is commonly talked about as a one-time-only thing. But anyone who's had to do it knows it's more like a lifetime process. Every time a member of the LGBTQ community meets a new person, they inevitably start working out the "best" time to inform the other that they're gay/bi/queer – either that or continually convince themselves it's not necessary (the route I usually take). Continue reading

Private: 5045 – Kim Kelsey

I came out at the age of 28. One Saturday evening I sat across from my mother at the Olive Garden grappling with how to tell her that the first date I was going on in four years was with another woman. Actually, let me back up quite a bit. Thirteen years to be exact. Continue reading

Private: 5028 – Brittany Simpson

Looking back on things, I guess it was pretty obvious, given society's understanding of the relationships between sex, gender and sexual orientation. Maybe it was that I always wanted to be the dad when we played house. Maybe it was that I wore shit kickers and overalls, searched for snakes under rocks and begged my dad to build me a tree house.  Maybe it was that I would get home from elementary school Continue reading

Private: 5036 – Victor Tobar, “Choosing”

I often hear people play into the rhetoric around being Queer that's framed in the concept of choice. The age-old "nature vs. nurture" debate. Conversations based on the idea of not choosing to be Queer (or Gay, or Trans, etc.), but being "born this way." Continue reading

5002 – CJ Francisco

Honestly, I think I always knew.

When I was little I used to fantasize about being an adult and independent and what my life would be like then. I was always way too advanced for my age, and listening to Dr. Judy on Z100 at age 11 made sure I knew a lot

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