Today is National Coming Out Day, an annual celebration of people who have come out as lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender (LGBT) or other, and their allies. Started in 1988, the holiday is a chance for people everywhere to discuss civil rights and connect with peers inside and outside their communities.
For a lot of people, learning that someone they know and care about is LGBTQ+ can open a range of emotions, from confused to concerned, awkward to honored. It may be hard to know how to react, leaving you with questions about what to say, how to talk about being LGBTQ+ and wanting to know what you can do to be supportive.
Here are 10 ways you can be an ally:
- Be a listener.
- Be open-minded.
- Be willing to talk.
- Be inclusive and invite LGBT friends to hang out with your friends and family.
- Don’t assume that all your friends and co-workers are straight. Someone close to you could be looking for support in their coming-out process. Not making assumptions will give them the space they need.
- Anti-LGBT comments and jokes are harmful. Let your friends, family and co-workers know that you find them offensive.
- Confront your own prejudices and bias, even if it is uncomfortable to do so.
- Defend your LGBT friends against discrimination.
- Believe that all people, regardless of gender identity and sexual orientation, should be treated with dignity and respect.
- If you see LGBT people being misrepresented in the media, you can contact glaad.org.
BONUS TIPS
Additional points to consider written by Carlos Maza published originally on the Washington Post:
If you’re someone who identifies as an ally to the LGBT community: Thank you. And here are four ways you can be an ally and really mean it.
Be aware of how much space you take up.
It is awesome when straight and cisgender people want to visit queer spaces (bars, clubs and nearly every coffee shop). A lot of us grew up feeling like outcasts. Seeing that you want to visit our world is a powerful experience. But try to imagine what it would be like if, every time you went to a bar, groups of queer people were there commenting on how much they loved straight people; how cute you all are and how straight bars are so interesting and different. After a while, you’d get really annoyed. You’d be tired of feeling novel, of feeling different, when you’re just trying to relax or flirt or get laid. And you’d be right. We feel that way, too.
Don’t minimize a person’s queerness.
If I had a nickel for every time I heard a well-meaning friend say some version of “I don’t even think of you as a gay, I just think of you as a person” I could pay so many parking tickets. Every queer person relates to their queerness differently. For some, it’s background noise. For me, it’s full orchestra doing a Celine Dion medley at max volume in my head at all times. Either way, telling someone that you don’t acknowledge or think about their queerness is not kind or enlightened. At best, it makes a significant part of our identity feel like a footnote. At worst, it can make us feel like you think of our queerness as something that’s better left unsaid.
Let LGBT people disappoint you.
Despite what my brain tells me after exactly one light beer, I cannot and will not ever be Neil Patrick Harris. Media representations of LGBT people tend to be highly polished and unrealistic. LGBT characters are well-dressed, witty, successful, ambitious, funny and likable. Sometimes, they are noble victims, fighting righteously against clear-cut examples of discrimination. Other times, they’re lovable sidekicks, existing mainly to support the straight main character or offer comedic relief.
On one hand, it’s cool to see positive depictions of LGBT people on TV. On the other hand, I ate hummus with a plastic fork all this weekend because I didn’t want to deal with the anxiety of going to Trader Joe’s.
Most LGBT people will never be as impressive, interesting or likable as the ones you see on TV. LGBT people are fully formed humans who struggle with work, our families, our romantic lives and our own personal baggage. We are flawed, wounded, mean, thoughtless, inadequate, afraid of dying, confused, cranky for no reason, insecure and lonely — just like every other human. The LGBT characters we see on TV can sometimes feel as foreign to us as the straight characters.
If you find yourself frustrated that LGBT people in your life aren’t living up to the expectation you had for them in your mind, ask yourself where that expectation came from. Then let it go.
Being an ally is about more than policy.
It goes without saying that there’s a tremendous, kind of overwhelming amount of work to do until LGBTQ — especially transgender — people are treated equally under the law in the United States. That is incredibly important, and being an ally obviously means contributing to that fight whenever and however possible. But I can’t tell you how many times I needed an “ally” before I ever thought about laws or court cases.
So much of the difficult parts of being LGBT exist outside of the legal system — family rejection, street harassment, internalized shame, demeaning media representations and countless other social stressors.
And the frustrating truth is, even huge victories like legalizing same-sex marriage don’t magically make things better. Queer people’s feelings of rejection or shame, especially around a core part of their identities, can do a lot of long-term damage before and after they make it to the wedding chapel. And the experiences that do the most harm to queer people — such as being pushed away from their families or told they’re abnormal by their classmates — usually look way less sensational than county clerks refusing to issue marriage certificates.
As an ally, it’s not your job to be a therapist or counselor. But it is your job to listen to the LGBT people in your life, to ask them how they’re doing, to be aware that they may have gone through (and might still be going through) some things you don’t understand, and offer support when you can.
Keeping your heart open and an eye out for your LGBT brothers and sisters after the pride parties have ended and court cameras have turned off will go a lot further than votes or parade posters will ever do.
OTHER WAYS YOU CAN SUPPORT:
Supporting organizations that focus on LGBTQ+ is another great way to be an ally. Below are a few Chicago-based organizations that provide great resources for LGBTQ+ youth
- El Rescate El Rescate Transitional Living Program provides culturally appropriate, identity-affirming housing for homeless LGBTQ and/or HIV-positive youth ages 18-24 through a continuum of solutions. As part of this program, youth have access to the HIV prevention services offered by Vida/SIDA as well asemployment/educational resources and Living Skills Training.
- Project Fierce Chicago seeks to create affirming transitional housing for LGTBQIA+ youth in Chicago that is responsive to the needs of young people. (For in-kind donations (such as furniture, office supplies, etc.: projectfiercechicagodonations@gmail.com )
- Broadway Youth Center (BYC) – For more than 1,500 teens and young adults, the Broadway Youth Center (BYC) of Howard Brown Health is a haven for LGBTQ youth and young people experiencing homelessness or housing instability. (currently looking for travel deodorant, backpacks, binders)
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