Marriage equality was upheld by the Supreme Court as a constitutional right in 2015. So much has changed for the LGBTQIA+ community in the decade since I left Yale. True allyship can only be found in tangible action. Learning more about identities and groups outside of my own is the first step to taking meaningful action on their behalf. To me, being an ally starts with education. I also realized I had more work to do to become engaged and educated.
Hearing that story opened my eyes tremendously, and helped me see the LGBTQIA+ community with a new kind of sensitivity and nuance. His parents were accepting of him, but that didn’t erase the fear of rejection and alienation that had already run so deep in his veins for his entire childhood. It was, thankfully, a happy story–but when reading between the lines I could see the anxiety and fear in the backdrop of what he was saying. One of the most memorable moments was hearing my friend’s coming out story.
I learned new terminology, made new friends, and listened to stories that powerfully shifted my understanding of their life experiences. At Yale, there was a thriving scene for LGBTQIA+ folks from all sorts of backgrounds and identities. While I grew up knowing a few individuals within the LGBTQIA+ community, my experience of being an active ally began during college.
