CONTACTStaffCAREER OPPORTUNITIESADVERTISE WITH USPRIVACY POLICYPRIVACY PREFERENCESTERMS OF USELEGAL NOTICE
© 2024 Pride Publishing Inc.
All Rights reserved
All Rights reserved
By continuing to use our site, you agree to our Private Policy and Terms of Use.
"Mom, I like girls ... ."
That's what I wrote five years ago in my coming out letter to my mom. I was 11 at the time I wrote the letter, and I didn't know that my mom would become my fiercest supporter, giving me the courage and strength to walk through the halls of my schools as a proud, out lesbian.
It's that same courage and strength that made me hopeful that the day would come when I'd no longer face physical attacks or name calling by other students at my school in Minnesota's Anoka-Hennepin School District.
That day finally came last week.
In 2011, I joined five other students in lawsuits challenging a district policy that made it hard for school staff to protect lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and gender non-conforming kids from bullies. The lawsuits were resolved last Monday, setting up changes that will make district schools safer for students like me.
My mom gave me my bravery, but it's been a long time since I've been able to walk with my head held high without having to look over my shoulder--on high-alert for my schoolmates attacking me or yelling "dyke" or "faggot" at me.
The bullying started the very first day I walked through my new middle school three years ago, with students staring, pointing, and throwing degrading insults at me because I like wearing baggy pants, oversized T-shirts, and caps over my braids.
Teachers couldn't stop the bullying, and the insults got even more vulgar and violent as students pushed me into lockers, with one student even punching me in the stomach after calling me a "he-she."
The bullying was constant, and it began taking its toll on me. No one should ever have to experience what I've been through, or any other type of bullying and harassment that LGBT students have faced in the school district. I'm glad I had my mom's support to stand up for myself, and to challenge the district's policy by filing the federal gender and sexual orientation harassment lawsuits against the district with the five other bullied students from the district.
The changes that are now on their way make me hopeful that other students--today and in the future--will never be humiliated or hurt by their school peers, and that through my experiences and action, others will be able to walk down the halls of their school, unafraid to be who they are.
I no longer have to look over my shoulder at school. I will be safe, just like every student deserves. I will hold my head high. I can be out, and proud.
Want more breaking equality news & trending entertainment stories?
Check out our NEW 24/7 streaming service: the Advocate Channel!
Download the Advocate Channel App for your mobile phone and your favorite streaming device!
From our Sponsors
Most Popular
Here Are Our 2024 Election Predictions. Will They Come True?
November 07 2023 1:46 PM
Meet all 37 of the queer women in this season's WNBA
April 17 2024 11:24 AM
17 Celebs Who Are Out & Proud of Their Trans & Nonbinary Kids
November 30 2023 10:41 AM
Here Are the 15 Most LGBTQ-Friendly Cities in the U.S.
November 01 2023 5:09 PM
Which State Is the Queerest? These Are the States With the Most LGBTQ+ People
December 11 2023 10:00 AM
These 27 Senate Hearing Room Gay Sex Jokes Are Truly Exquisite
December 17 2023 3:33 PM
10 Cheeky and Homoerotic Photos From Bob Mizer's Nude Films
November 18 2023 10:05 PM
42 Flaming Hot Photos From 2024's Australian Firefighters Calendar
November 10 2023 6:08 PM
These Are the 5 States With the Smallest Percentage of LGBTQ+ People
December 13 2023 9:15 AM
Here are the 15 gayest travel destinations in the world: report
March 26 2024 9:23 AM
Watch Now: Advocate Channel
Trending Stories & News
For more news and videos on advocatechannel.com, click here.
Trending Stories & News
For more news and videos on advocatechannel.com, click here.
Latest Stories
Iraq postpones vote on bill punishing gay sex with death
April 20 2024 1:31 PM
Russian poetry contest bans entries from transgender poets
April 20 2024 1:25 PM
Here's who won 'RuPaul's Drag Race' season 16
April 20 2024 1:01 PM
The Tip Off: A beginners guide to the WNBA
April 20 2024 11:06 AM
John Fetterman challenges Pa. school board’s cancellation of talk by gay actor
April 19 2024 2:39 PM
New study finds inadequate response to mpox outbreak
April 19 2024 2:06 PM
Fighting back against MAGA’s attacks on equality
April 19 2024 1:00 PM
Just one Christian Nationalist group is behind Idaho's bans on trans care and abortion
April 19 2024 11:57 AM
Linda Perry opens up in new documentary, premiering in June at Tribeca Festival
April 19 2024 11:43 AM
Trans woman loses lower legs in NYC subway attack. Now, friends rally to help her
April 19 2024 10:06 AM
Black trans woman África Parrilla García shot to death in Puerto Rico
April 18 2024 4:55 PM
Marjorie Taylor Greene has sunk so low even Fox News can't stand her anymore
April 18 2024 4:04 PM
Single lesbians are avoided by straight women, but not straight men. Here's why.
April 18 2024 3:18 PM
The LGBTQ+ movie fan's guide to the 2024 TCM Classic Film Festival
April 18 2024 2:44 PM
The federal government failed on mpox. Ritchie Torres's new bill addresses that (exclusive)
April 18 2024 1:21 PM
True
In the face of tweets and turmoil, why I left the South as a medical student
April 18 2024 7:30 AM