Carson / United States
“fear was a huge part of growing up in my small midwestern town where the word ‘gay’ was synonymous with: abnormal, disgusting, diseased, evil, & poisonous. when he found out, my step-father put me in therapy to fix my ‘faggot phase’ and refused to call me by anything other than ‘faggot’ or ‘little shit’. i fled to university only to end up at a school where homosexuality was frowned upon and i was banned from any extra-curricular activities my senior year because of my sexuality. when i finally officially came out, most of my friends/family turned their backs on me and i was left with little to rely on. but even with all the hurt & pain, I never let my drive for true happiness fade. I now live in a place where my love is celebrated and accepted and I have a great life with a loving husband and amazing friends. I know I’m lucky and can’t even begin to fathom the hardships of other members of the #LGBT community in countries #WhereLoveIsIllegal and you aren’t allowed to be yourself. But I can hope that someday everyone will know what it’s like to be respected by other human beings & live without fear and shame.”
