I’m Jake Manickam and I identify as genderfluid, so really whatever pronouns you want to use is acceptable with me! Going to a PWI, racial identity, especially because my south Indian heritage is something that is such a huge part of me, is something that isn’t shown off very much. Also, my pansexuality is something that isn’t talked about very much at all. Others would find it easier to label it bisexual or greedy, so there is such a stigma on this campus concerning identities or concepts that are not common among minority groups. I came out on January 22nd, 2017. It was not a pretty process and my family and I are in a better place, but still with the knowledge that in approximately a year and a half from now, I won’t have a home to go to. To keep a long story short, I am very grateful that my parents are taking me through my bachelors, but once undergrad is over, I have the freedom to be who I want to be at all times and I will have the ability to only keep people in my life who will support me but challenge me to grow. I am typically outspoken about topics most people don’t want to talk about. It’s all about the bystander effect: If you don’t do it, you’re going to wait on someone else to do it, it might not happen. It’s something that is integral to who I am as a person, definitely affects my everyday conversation, and particularly guides what I decide to be passionate about. It’s most definitely not something that I flaunt or even remotely advertise unless it is asked of me. What I ask for is human decency but I believe that should be applicable to all aspects of human interactions, not just in relation to my identity. Not being quick to judge, not understanding everyone’s viewpoints but being able to respect that everyone has an opinion so long as it’s not a detriment to others. Diversity equates to representation which equates to exposure. Exposure, in and of itself opens up the conversation by demanding the two most important questions to begin understanding any concept: “What did I feel?”and “Why did I feel that way?” Diversity to me is recognizing that every individual is different. I think events like the True Life Panel and The Multicultural Festival is so important to expose a lot of people to cultures that they wouldn’t necessarily be exposed to. I think the True Life Panel has more of an impact because there’s more substance in it; you can ask those hard hitting questions that let people realize the intricacies of perception and representation. I think events like those should be more widespread and should reach a lot more people. I look up to so many famous drag queens such as Bianca del Rio, Trixie Mattel, Monique Hart, and even local queens like Shanita Quit and Sylvia Sterling, not that I resonate strongly with their identities, but the fact that they push home the idea that one should always be quintessentially themselves at all times and be proud of it. Love Simon was a film that came out back in March. Though, it received mixed reviews, ranging from people raving over the movie and people saying it was not worth the hype, it did open up the conversation to a lot of people, specifically a lot of parents who, because of the movie, were able to finally learn how to accepting and receptive to their LGBT+ children. It’s the stories of someone’s mother seeing the film and finally wanting to get invested in their daughter’s lesbian orientation that was the ultimate purpose of the film; to start the conversation. Especially in Indian culture, where all of the conversations and generational opinions stem from the film industry, India is finally now dealing with the stigma of mental health and has now decriminalized homosexual relations, which has a lot in part to do with the liberal shift occurring in the film industry. There is an overwhelming amount of evidence that film and other forms of media can affect the course of thought among viewers. It’s the same reason we can cry when we see a picture, a movie, or a song. Especially on this PWI, campus is not exposed to inclusivity a lot. There are people who are raised to hate all LGBT+ people, people of color, and even the handicapped. However, all it takes is that one experience that can throw everything a person might know out the window. Inclusivity means exposure and that equates to challenging preconceived notions and once those are knocked down, then primary experiences and legitimate opinions can be formed. Without inclusivity, diversity, which I think has the implication of celebration, would rapidly degenerate into division.
Jake
I’m Em and my pronouns are they/them or he/him! My identity is Nonbinary gender. I feel like just by the way I present, I “come out” to most people I interact with. I express myself as me, which is openly androgynous, but that seems to confuse people a lot, haha! Most people assume I’m either a girl if they see my whole body, or a guy if only my upper body and face. I like being somewhere in between but also nowhere at all. I like being me! I felt like I could have a voice for other nonbinary people on campus who feel unseen and underrepresented and like their voice doesn’t matter. But it does and you people out there being yourself make me happier than anything. My identity is a part of who I am. It’s not all of me; I don’t go up to people and introduce myself as “hi I’m gay.” It’s more of another colored tile in the mosaic that I call myself. I have a purple tile for my photography, a blue tile for my love of the ocean, a yellow tile for my optimistic personality. Me being nonbinary is just another tile amongst everything else that makes up who I am. I’m looking for understanding more than anything. I want people to understand nonbinary people and be aware of why we are the way we are. You don’t have to agree or accept it, but at the very least I want people to at least try and understand and to realize that we really are just ordinary people in the end. Diversity is strength in difference. There are a BILLION people on this world and each have their own dna. It’s a dang shame that we don’t celebrate that more and instead use these differences to divide us. Diversity is seeing those differences and accepting and loving them and the people who are different.I really think that people who are seen to be in the minority just speaking out and showing others that they’re a.) not alone and b.) won’t stop being themselves just because people are telling them so can speak loudly. A unifying voice of diversity that seeks to educate and stand firm. The music group BTS has helped a lot in my identity and coming to terms with who i am. The lyrics of their songs bring meaning and comfort and have helped me to love and accept myself after spending so many years uncertain and worried to an unhealthy degree about what other people think. They’ve helped me to stand firm and speak myself as “me.” As well, they are very pretty boys, and seeing them there being pretty but still masculine has influenced me a lot in my own gender expression. I don’t have to be 100% masculine to prove myself as not the gender I was born as. I can be pretty and be a boy at the same time, and I think that’s pretty dope. Since we’re able to comprehend words during childhood, we have been constantly affected by whatever stories we hear, whether it’s a mother’s lullaby, gossip amongst adults, or a kids television show about ducks who save the day. People discredit media so often, but don’t realize just how much we as people are shaped by the stories and experiences of others, fictional or otherwise. Even as people grow up, seeing themself in someway or another in a book, show, video game, etc can be a massive affirmation of them as a person. It’s enough to say “hey, I’m just like you. You’re not alone” and I think that’s a very small but very crucial part of how people work.Being able to see yourself represented anywhere is important. I know personally whenever I see someone that looks more androgynous, I do a mental fist pump and “hell yeah” because i just saw someone like me, and so unlike me and it’s awesome!! Seeing ourselves and reaffirming ourselves through the presence of others is powerful and something almost necessary for our hyper-social human brains.
Em
My name is Annie Dillingham and I identify as pansexual. Well, I guess I’ve always kind of known, but because of my baptist high school I kind of had to shove that down. But by the time senior year hit I realized that hiding was not good for me. I decided to be a part of this project because I feel like I have something to share . I come from an extremely religious background and I see both sides of the argument. I can argue and see the religious side and also see why liking other genders isn’t wrong. My identity makes me who I am and if I can’t express myself with my identity then I feel trapped and boxed in. Coming here has given me freedom that I never really got in high school. Diversity means being your own self, because if everyone’s themself then no one is going to be the same, which makes it so cool.
Annie