by Lindsay Church I came out of the closet in 2003, a few months after I graduated high school. Before coming out, I remember walking the halls of my high school and being taunted by football players who would hurl their favorite nicknames at me that included “butch”, “dyke”, and other creative names they would …
By Camden Ador This speech originally presented at Fight The Ban – New York City, April 13th, 2019 Good morning everyone, my name is Camden. I’m a transgender man, US Navy veteran, and visual artist. When I was asked if I wanted to speak today, my first thought was yes, this is amazing! But then …
I served from 92-96 on the United States Navy while presenting as female. While I was serving it was during my A School at the age of 18 that I was starting to discover my sexuality and come to the realization that I was a lesbian. There was a small group of us that hung out, Don’t Ask Don’t Tell had just been signed and was not yet implemented.
November is a month of mixed feelings. Like September, a month filled with melancholic memories of 9/11, the ominous uptick of pumpkin spice latte ads, Suicide Awareness Month, and my birthday, November provides a lens of reflection for Veterans Day. However, I would be remiss if I didn’t share how Anthony Bourdain’s suicide in June …
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Decolonize Love: Fighting Colonialism in the Age of Indigenous Renaissance A look back on a 12-hour conversation where love was decolonized between two veterans. When I met Alessandro on our first date, he told me he was born in Genoa, the birthplace of Cristoforo Colombo, or Christopher Columbus as we know him in the United …
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For me, a Phoenix represents rebirth and regeneration. A phoenix is something born from the ashes that rises and is engulfed in the beauty of grandeur and strength. All veterans, regardless of time in service, rank, or discharge changes once they leave the armed forces. The transformation from sailor, marine, airman or soldier to civilian …
If you were on an Acela train from Washington DC to New York City on the afternoon of August 24th, 2018, you might have seen a woman wearing earbuds doing a very poor job of not crying in public. That woman was me, and those were tears of joy. When I left the military at …
My name is Tramese “Missy” Byrd. I am an African American, LGBTQ, disabled Veteran. At the age of 18 I signed a Division One basketball scholarship to the United States Air Force Academy. The campus felt like home, until I started acting differently and did not know why. During my junior year I began having …
When I think back to my childhood, I cannot remember a lot and the only feelings that stuck with me were anxiety and shame. I always felt different and less than. I was a nervous kid. Junior and Senior High School was a treacherous minefield. I was a little late on the development scale and …