James
My identity is: Gay
My pronouns are: He/him
GSU Staff Member
It's easy to think that things are more inclusive as time marches on, but I still find barriers in my life. Over the last few years I joined the Kings Cross Steelers Rugby Club and finally found a community of other gay men (bi and straight too) that became my teammates and friends. It was lovely to see Heartstopper on Netflix showing that you can be LGBTQ+ and play sport, I hope this helps to reduce the barriers I felt growing up to participate in sport.
On the first night of Uni someone asked if I was gay and it was a relief to be able to start my journey at University being out properly. I'd moved very far away from home to finally find a space where I felt I could be my genuine self 100% of the time. I had my first experience of going to an LGBTQ+ venue, my first Pride, and first relationship at University.
My pride message:
In many countries, things have been moving backwards for LGBTQ+ rights. Pride is still so important to raise awareness of the daily struggles of the community globally and here in the UK. If you're able to do something for the community, please do what you can to ensure we can all feel pride rather than shame or judgement.