#5 Read the Labels

Everyone loves to put labels on themselves to define who they are as human beings. Leader, mother, nerd, jock, smart: these are all labels that people use every day. Labels are very important in the LGBT community. Labels give LGBT people a sense of security that they don't have before accepting their identity. Before coming out most queer people are too afraid to even use words such as queer, bisexual, and especially gay. After they come out they can claim those words and they become a part of their self-identity. they can then proudly proclaim their queerness even if other people don't accept it. Some people will scoff at certain labels such as asexual, bi-romantic, or pansexual. Some heterosexual people do not understand the need or use of queer labels, but what they don't realize is that everyone uses them, ours are just more important to us. That’s why a queer person will ask you to respect and use the correct labels and pronouns, because they are a part of who LGBT people are. So until next time, always be kind and remember #LoveWins.