“MY NAME IS STEPH AND I WAS ONE OF THE EARLY CONTRIBUTORS OF WHERE LOVE IS ILLEGAL. I am writing yall to update you on my life. I am a queer Xicana from the border of Texas. Three years ago, I came out to my family and was called homophobic slurs. I will always remember what my mother told me the day I came out, she said, “if abuelo finds out and you give him a heart attack, I will never forgive you.” Those words hurt me the most. How could I cause so much pain to someone by simply loving another human being? I was ashamed and mad at myself and quickly spiraled into a depression. At that moment, I knew I had to start all over again and heal. I knew I had to figure out how identifying as pansexual would play a role in my life as a Xicana. So, my partner and I left and have been traveling for 3 years now. We started a queer travel page called @lesbinomadic in hopes to inspire other qpoc to travel. As a brown and queer woman, we don´t see and experience the world as any other white heterosexual woman. We have experienced so much discrimination a long our way but it won´t make us give up. We just want to make an impact on the world by normalizing queer love and affection. After three years with my partner, I finally asked her to marry me. Most of my family members still haven´t met her but my mother is slowly coming along. We live together in Spain and my mother has said that she plans on visiting us. I don´t hate my family…They all grew up in an extremely conservative and catholic lifestyle in Mexico and it was a different time. I just want them to come around. Mi familia es mi Corazon and I miss them so much. I just want them to know that I´m a better version of myself and that I will always love them.”

Original story :

“I come from a bordertown in Texas where the views and values of same sex couples, for the most part, is still forbidden. I found my soul mate in Austin, Texas and due to coming out, I still get called homophobic slurs from family members and have been casted out. We decided to backpack different countries to get a better understanding of their values and norms. We soon realized that we never met a lgbqt or interracial couple. We started a travel blog @lesbinomadic to help give tips on how and where to travel… we want every minority to be able to have the same or better experiences then we have received.”

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