Image by Pixabay.
(For how i crafted these quotes, see What i changed in survey-takers' responses and What i didn't change.)
Being queer today is really difficult. Our lives are harder than straight, cis teens' lives. We know how much hatred, ignorance, and bigotry there is out there for us. We face discrimination and exclusion. Sometimes, we are denied jobs because of who we are. So being out to everyone is unsafe.
Straight and cis people perpetuate anti-queer and anti-trans stigma.
Gay marriage doesn't make the world okay with us or for us. Our human rights should not be up for debate.
The world hates the things that we love.
Being trans puts me at risk for violence and discrimination. But denying myself is so much worse.
Being marginalized for identities on top of being queer or trans is complicated.
Some people don't see me as fully human. That doesn't make me feel great about humanity.
I wouldn't think about my gender or sexuality at all if politicians and the media didn't make it such a huge deal all the time.
We need other people to stand up for us. I should't have to skip school to testify for my rights or to wonder if my state will pass discriminatory legislation tomorrow. It's exhausting.
Discrimination in my state isn't my fault. "It's the world's job to be better, not my job to move to a different place."
I'm a trans woman who's too tall to easily pass as a cis woman, which makes dealing with other people complicated and exhausting. If I don't work really hard to pass, I may be "misgendered or mistreated," which is also draining. Being exhausted makes it really hard to do my homework. "I just need the cis adults in my life to understand that I'm trying my best, even though my best isn't really great anymore."
"we are having issues learning about how to protect our Drag house's drag shows from active shooters. community members/allys can volunteer to be a 'see something say something' reporter.
"we give them bright flashlights and they are there to be the official allies, stand up for people, and help report things when they happen
"this is new and we need help creating a framework for protecting queer student/community events."
"Shits hard right now in the US and I might move to Canada at some point. 😅"
"I just want to live my life as who I am, I hate that I likely will never get to live comfortably and unapologetically as myself."
"I live in a state with one of the highest amounts of anti LGBTQIA+ legislation, and multiple things have been passed."
"Being queer in a hostile environment is incredibly isolating."
"Being myself is scary. I don't know how people will react to my identity when I tell them."
"Sometimes the pressure on me as a queer teen is debilitating."
"Just because you live in an urban area or blue state doesn't mean that queer, trans people in red states or rural areas are liberated too. The fight is far from over, and we cannot leave anyone behind."
"I just hope that queer and trans people can find joy and understanding in their communities and live happy, meaningful lives."
