I moved to Washington, D.C., to work with Human Rights Campaign to fight for LGBTQ equality at the federal level. My first tentative steps into advocacy in Houston became a confident stride as I organized rallies and marches on behalf of victims of hate crimes. I emerged from the terror of those years into the world of political activism. But I just became an even bigger target for mockery by boys who wanted to prove how manly they were. I eventually came out at 15, and I’d love to say that it got better after that. I was the quiet, bespectacled nerd who knew the answers to questions from the teachers, but not what to say to avoid getting hammered in the hallways. When I realized it, too, I tried to hide it by making myself as small as possible. The folks in my neighborhood knew that I was gay before I did.
