As I count the ones who have taken up their dusty swords and axes for my cause, I cannot help but notice how many of the usually loud and proud voices I hear during Pride are now not even uttering a whisper in my defense. I would be lying if I said I was not […]
Appropriating a non-mainstream identity, especially for our kids, is not only deeply misguided, but a further dehumanization of the identities we’re appropriating. Living with an almost-3-year-old means hearing every variation of the word no 214 times a day. It means shoving an unconscionable amount of requested-then-rejected food down the garbage disposal, hearing the disintegration of […]
Just like that, I found myself realizing I wasn’t nearly as straight as I thought I was. Sexuality is a topic that’s difficult to write about, for a lot of obvious reasons. Sexual identity is something that’s unique and personal to every human being, and as such, my experience is unlikely to mirror yours in […]
My dad never had to sit down to teach me how to be a man. I simply learned from watching him. My dad brushed my hair, painted my nails, and played Barbies with me. He never questioned my following him around like his shadow. When we went shopping, he let me pick out my own […]
Disabled adults are sometimes the most forgotten. We’re generally not as cute as disabled kids, and society looks at us as hopeless cases. I was born autistic and gay. I was also born with blue eyes, brownish hair, and short stubby fingers that would obviously hinder any attempt to become President of the USA, but […]
Straight cis men never refer to their male friends as their boyfriends. So, why do straight women continue to refer to their platonic female friends as such? It’s 2016, ladies. In 2014, at the ripe old age of 24, I finally got myself a girlfriend, and I was amped about it. I was in love. […]
In the areas closest to my heart, my conclusion is that the Catholic Church has improved its public relations much more than its actual substance. Like many ex-Catholics, I pay careful attention to the words of Pope Francis. I left the church when I came out as a lesbian in my mid-20s and Pope Francis’ […]
I just consider myself a woman in the absence of a uterus and ovaries. While it could be easy to lie to myself and pretend I’m just a “normal” cis-gender woman (a person whose self-identity conforms with the gender they were born as), I know it’s not really the case. My chromosome makeup is 46 XY; […]
Just treat us with respect, be open to learning from mistakes, and apologize when you make them. And, you know, don’t ask about our genitals. Nothing ruins a fabulous day for me more than entitlement. I’m talking about the expectations placed on me as a transgender person that are never placed on my cisgender counterparts. […]
Yes, every child needs a family, but the composition of the family is not what’s relevant. As co-mamas to a 7-year-old boy named Bobby, my partner Valerie and I are subject to a lot of negative judgments about our parenting. People who will never meet us declare us to be unfit parents simply because she […]
We hijack their voices before they are old enough to form their own opinions, exploiting their cuteness or creating shock value by inserting an innocent child into a messy adult debate. In the wake of recent shock videos purporting to “prove” that Planned Parenthood sells aborted body parts, social media has erupted once again with […]
The ancient system relies on outdated relationship standards and almost completely ignores the LGBTQIA community. Giddiness overcomes me every morning when I read my daily horoscope. Yes, I believe that there is some truth to the zodiac. I think the science of planetary gravitational forces, Mercury retrogrades, and the Sun trining with Mars (whatever that […]
