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gravityeyelidsvia http://ift.tt/2h72fBg:
theultravioletcatastrophe:
dork-bending:
magikofficial:
Tea time part of the reason it’s hard to create LGBT spaces for minors is because there is a common perception that we’re literally child predators. Like if a gay man were to try and make some sort of youth center for young boys the critiques would be relentless. There are probably people who would read that sentence and think those critiques are justified.
Story time: When I was like 14 and a Baby Queer™ just starting to figure out that I proooobably wasn’t straight, dealing with a couple of really scary mental health issues, I also met Jen. Jen was in just one of my classes, a senior, and honestly?? when we became friends she saved my life repeatedly. I literally do not think I could have survived my freshman year without her. She was this large, scary looking, openly out butch lesbian who took me under her wing, kept me safe and helped me learn how to love myself. She would literally sit there with me during episodes, stroke my hair offer to get me water, and when it was over she never condemned me for this. She gave me the confidence boost I needed to ask out my first girlfriend. Jen defended me against my bullies without hesitation. She told me that it didn’t matter if my parents didn’t accept who I was and she helped me overcome my fear of my abuser. I used to unironically call her mom.
… and yet I was legitimately terrified to talk about her after she graduated bc people assumed she was a Predatory Lesbian, Grooming a Poor Confused Child™ while we where still in school at the same time and people made me feel ashamed of the time I’d spent with Jen. Even though 1. she only ever helped me 2. she was the best thing that happened to me that year, and possibly high school in general.
(straight) people need to fucking stop seeing older gays mentoring and looking out for younger gays as inherently predatory.
No kidding. If older LGBT folks don’t look out for younger LGBT folks, who’s going to? Straight people sure as hell aren’t. They’re more likely to be the kind of people younger LGBT folks need protecting from.
theultravioletcatastrophe:
dork-bending:
magikofficial:
Tea time part of the reason it’s hard to create LGBT spaces for minors is because there is a common perception that we’re literally child predators. Like if a gay man were to try and make some sort of youth center for young boys the critiques would be relentless. There are probably people who would read that sentence and think those critiques are justified.
Story time: When I was like 14 and a Baby Queer™ just starting to figure out that I proooobably wasn’t straight, dealing with a couple of really scary mental health issues, I also met Jen. Jen was in just one of my classes, a senior, and honestly?? when we became friends she saved my life repeatedly. I literally do not think I could have survived my freshman year without her. She was this large, scary looking, openly out butch lesbian who took me under her wing, kept me safe and helped me learn how to love myself. She would literally sit there with me during episodes, stroke my hair offer to get me water, and when it was over she never condemned me for this. She gave me the confidence boost I needed to ask out my first girlfriend. Jen defended me against my bullies without hesitation. She told me that it didn’t matter if my parents didn’t accept who I was and she helped me overcome my fear of my abuser. I used to unironically call her mom.
… and yet I was legitimately terrified to talk about her after she graduated bc people assumed she was a Predatory Lesbian, Grooming a Poor Confused Child™ while we where still in school at the same time and people made me feel ashamed of the time I’d spent with Jen. Even though 1. she only ever helped me 2. she was the best thing that happened to me that year, and possibly high school in general.
(straight) people need to fucking stop seeing older gays mentoring and looking out for younger gays as inherently predatory.
No kidding. If older LGBT folks don’t look out for younger LGBT folks, who’s going to? Straight people sure as hell aren’t. They’re more likely to be the kind of people younger LGBT folks need protecting from.
