It’s the look of confusion I find most amusing–and it’s not something I can easily explain.
Maybe it’s being named after two amazing gay aunts; maybe it’s rudely being called “lesbians” by a passing car while walking to the mall with my lesbian best friend; maybe it’s nothing.
Either way, like the people we fall in love with, we oftentimes don’t choose the causes we equally fall in love with. An injustice can hit you so emotionally that you are impelled to do something about it.
Hear me now and hear me loud: I am a die-hard straight ally and proud of it.
When I express my passion for LGBTQ rights, the response that follows is usually one of bewilderment, both towards my heterosexuality and towards my fight. While I have not experienced the hardships of being a lesbian first hand, I have witnessed the countless number of intentional LGBTQ insults hurled and thrown around at my school, many towards my closest of friends. “That’s so gay,” is becoming tiresome; it always has been. But now, it personally offends me and, even more, angers me.
Training to be a volunteer for the Safe Space Campaign at The Center Long Beach has been, simply put, one of the most awarding experiences–and I’m only about half way done. Safe Space, started by the Gay Lesbian Straight Education Network, hopes to make positive changes in physical and mental security for LGBTQ students in the Long Beach Unified School District. By educating teachers and staff about becoming an ally, GLSEN hopes to create a safe environment for the LGBTQ student body.
The volunteers I work with are quite a mix, ranging from teachers to navy veterans. Needless to say, at seventeen-years-old, I am the youngest. But from the moment I walked in, I was greeted by friendly individuals who I felt valued my opinion (something I highly appreciate at my age: it never wears old when people consistently downsize your opinion because of your age).
The more I learn about the campaign and the issues of bullying, the more I open my eyes to the intolerance that is overlooked by most straight students, the ones who have it easier without even having to lift a finger. They fit in. They blend.
This fall, my fellow volunteers and I will present Safe Space to middle and high schools. The campaign will urge schools to examine their own LGBT affability: Is there a gender-neutral dress code? Same-sex prom date? While these are just suggestions, they are a step in the right direction.
Sadly, I don’t expect these changes to be taken lightly; they might even cause a disturbance. And while I expect the ignorant to be ignorant, I have faith in the kind-hearted and open-minded. My hope is for equality, whether L, G, B, T, Q, or straight or just human.