TODAY IS WORLD CANCER DAY!

THIS GAY TEEN WAS THREATENED WITH EXPULSION FOR BEING GAY

A gay teen was told by his principal to shut up about his sexuality or he could face expulsion.

Austin Wallis, an American student who posts vidoes on YouTube, recently showed him reduced to tears after he recounted the story of how he was forced to change schools.

‘I hope that my story will make a difference in someone else’s life and maybe I can change things so this will never happen again’, he said.

Wallis, who was a student at a small, Christian private school in Texas, was called into the principal’s office two weeks ago where he was told his principal knew about the vlogger's sexuality.

When Wallis’ mother came in with him the next day, he was given a choice that felt like he was one misstep away from being expelled.

He says: ‘The gist of it was: I had to go back into the closet. Which means I had to delete all my social media, including YouTube. I had to erase my digital impact on the world. And he said I’ll have to do that to stay at the school.’  

The heartbreaking video sees Wallis, supported by his partner Nicolay, stop occasionally because he is unable to speak through the tears.

'I couldn’t live with the fact of being at a school where they consider what I am really wrong.’

It was not the prospect of deleting all his social media activities that made Wallis decide to leave the school before he was being expelled, which he was sure would have happened, but the feeling that he was forced into being something that he was not – and the feeling of being rejected by his own principal.

‘When I came I out I knew I was going to have bullies and I knew people wouldn’t be okay with it. But I never expected it from the people who are supposed to protect you from the bullies, who are supposed to stop that. And then they themselves are the bullies,' Wallis adds.

The principal said he saw Wallis’ videos was reflecting badly on the school, even though the teen did not mention the school or any teachers by name and never wore the uniform in his videos.

‘I think it’s ridiculous that people are allowed to exclude children and teens for what they are,' he said. ‘I feel like that’s the most disgusting thing ever.’

He puts no blame on the teachers but says that some of them were outraged at what happened to their student.

Wallis, who describes himself as Christian, said: ‘I feel like you should be able to have Christian beliefs and still feel like everybody belongs.’ 

SOURCE: GAY STAR NEWS

¡DON'T CALL ME GAY!

There was a time when the word gay meant light-hearted and carefree. There was even a time when the word gay meant homosexual. But over the last few years, the word gay has slowly transformed into the ultimate playground insult for anything deemed tacky or uncool. It should come as no surprise then that many young LGB people are choosing to ditch the word entirely, even when referencing their own sexuality. Instead, restrictive labels such as lesbian, gay and bisexual are actively being dissolved in favour of a more casual approach to sexual identity.

Sexuality doesn’t need to be defended or justified. We have created change as a society, a really brilliant change. Please just open your minds and begin to think equal. Everyone is allowed to be individual. Though this new coming-out narrative is far from the norm though and raises many problems of its own. But if young people wish to define sexuality in more fluid terms then they must also accept that orientation can potentially move in either direction. Veering towards the straight side of the spectrum should be just as acceptable as a step towards the more sparkly side of the rainbow.

Additionally, it would seem rather naïve for many to assume they can leave behind the trappings of traditional definitions just because they don’t quite match their liberal-minded attitudes. Millions of people still depend on those imperfect labels for support and comradeship and, in a world where the battle for equality rages on, it’s unlikely that the word gay could ever truly become redundant. On the other hand, there are only so many letters you can superglue to sexuality umbrella before it inevitably implodes upon itself. The younger generation may seem prepared for this eventuality, but the rest of us might need to rethink our views if we are to understand the next chapter of queer culture. 

OVER 100,000 SIGN PETITION CALL OF LEELAH'S LAW

Over 100,000 people have signed a petition calling for Leelah's Law, the proposed legislation that could end LGBTI 'cure' therapy in the US.

The White House petition has gained the necessary amount of signatures required needed for a response from President Barack Obama.

It is hoped that the law will be enacted, protecting LGBTI teens from going through 'treatment' that most worldwide mainstream health organizations call extremely damaging and unneccessary.

To date, only California, New Jersey, and Washington DC have effective bans in place.

Leelah's Law is named in tribute to 17-year-old trans girl Leelah Alcorn, who committed suicide after walking into traffic on 28 December last year.

Before her death, she posted a suicide note on her Tumblr account.

She wrote about her mother thought she was 'wrong', took her out of public school and isolated her, and how she would only be taken to go to Christian therapists who told her to look for God for help.

Unaccepted by her family for who she was and forced to undergo conversion therapy, she became deeply depressed and that was when she decided to kill herself.

'The only way I will rest in peace is if one day transgender people aren’t treated the way I was, they’re treated like humans, with valid feelings and human rights,' Alcorn wrote.

'Gender needs to be taught about in schools, the earlier the better. My death needs to mean something.

'My death needs to be counted in the number of transgender people who commit suicide this year. I want someone to look at that number and say “that’s fucked up” and fix it.

'Fix society. Please.'

SOURCE: GAY STAR NEWS

GAY MEN & SKIN COLOR ¿WHY DOES IT MATTER SO MUCH?

I understand preference, but come on why would a gay man deprive himself from a great human experience based on the skin color of another man? 

Why make someone feel bad about their heritage and themselves because you have issues seeing past the outer exterior?

I do get that everyone has customer service needs and requirements, but I hate to inform you, this is not department store, this is REAL life. 

So why does skin color mean so much to gay men? 

Can anyone answer this question logically?

MICHAEL SAM FEATURED IN COKE'S ANTI-BULLING #MAKEITHAPPY SUPER BOWL CAMPAIGN

Michael Sam, the first openly gay player to be drafted by the NFL, is among the celebrities starring in Coca-Cola's #MakeItHappy Super Bowl Campaign.

While its 60-second spot didn't air until yesterday, Coke this week teased what we can expect with several videos released online.

Also released were several longer videos starring celebrities and teens talking about making the Internet a better place.

 “I see negativity daily,” Sam says in his 2-minute video. “I've gotten nasty tweets, Instagram messages. People have sent me YouTube videos and say how they hate me, how they wish that, you know, I was dead.”

“One nasty email, she pretty much told me that we don't belong, we're evil. She's really the only hate message I've ever replied to. And what I said was, I am sorry that you feel that way. Even though you hate me so much, I still love you, and I wish you have a great day. She never replied back.”

“I will be that person to stand against bullying, to stand against hate. The web can certainly spread happiness and love,” he adds.

 SOURCE: ON TOP MAG

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