In Florida, “Don’t Say Gay or Trans” Keeps Queer Students from Seeing Queer Futures for Themselves
nclrights.orgA few weeks ago, I got an unexpected Facebook notification. My high school had newly formed an alumni association, and they were reaching out to me to gauge my interest in speaking at my high school about my life and career.
I was excited – my high school was a Title I school and most of us who attended were low-income and disadvantaged. Despite that, the school had an International Baccalaureate program for some students to earn early college credits.
That program’s rigor made me a competitive candidate for prestigious universities, making it possible for a low-income student like me to get full financial aid at an Ivy League university.
I hoped that I could speak to students and show them what paths might be open to them. I wanted to speak to the students who didn’t fit in, the ones with thrift store clothes and an excess of ambition.
