Discovering My Asexuality

a person holding a flag and smiling

When puberty began, I assumed I was like everyone else. They got crushes on people, I got crushes on people. They wanted to hold hands and kiss their crushes, I wanted to hold hands and kiss my crushes. But in high school, I gradually realized that I was not like my friends. When one of…

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A Mother’s Journey To Affirmation

A woman is posing for a photo with another woman.

My daughter Kyndra Danyelle Frazier revealed to me that she was lesbian about 12 years ago. On that day, I was hurt but deep down in my soul I always knew that she was struggling with her sexuality. I always ignored it, simply too afraid to face the truth. I prayed daily for God to…

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Internalized Resilience—Embracing Thrivingness

A cactus with white flowers in the desert.

I am not oppressed, I am not a victim—I thrive, I rise, I am. A few months ago, I participated at an organization’s Board of Directors meeting. It was an intense gathering where we were all challenged to stretch beyond our comfort zones and look at how each of us participates in anti-oppression work and in…

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Young, Trans, and Afraid of the Bathroom

Editor’s Note: Today, the U.S. Departments of Education and Justice made it clear that they will not uphold guidelines designed to help schools support transgender students. Our faith tells us trans students deserve to be treated with dignity and respect—this includes the ability to use bathrooms and locker rooms that correspond with who they are.…

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Honoring The Wisdom Of Our Bodies

A silhouette of two hands making a heart shape.

As a young girl I grew up believing God had created humans perfectly in His image (Genesis 1:27). God made me with brown eyes, olive skin, small hands and feet, a soft heart and a quirky personality. I grew up believing that God saw me, his creation, as good. And therefore, so did I.  I…

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I’m Bisexual, Transgender, & Happy

A woman holding a bag of apples.

Standing amongst the rows of trees I stared across at my partner. She was smiling, grabbing apples from the trees with an excited exclamation as if each one was a new find, a sparkly treasure, with that same childlike wonder that made me first fall in love with her. Every time I see it, it…

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LGBTQ Mental Health Care In The Black Church

Black and white photo of a person holding a rosary.

Back in the day, Girlfriends was one of my favorite sitcoms to watch. To see the interactions between strong Black women on television that mirrored what I was exposed to in my family always left me joyful and anxious to watch the next episode. The cast of the show was Joan, Lynn, Mya, William and…

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My Christian Journey: Coming Out As Transgender

A group of people posing for a picture in a living room.

Hi, my name is Izek, and I identify as a bi-racial queer transman (FTM). Most importantly, I identify as a Christian. I have had positive and negative experiences coming out as transgender. Luckily, I already had supportive friends, family, and church community. This support made transitioning less intimidating. Although I had a decent amount of…

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Dragged To Drag: We Lip-Sync For The Lord

A woman with a green wig in a dark room.

Growing up as a gay male in the 60’s and 70’s, with the wider LGBT community just beginning to open the door to the great closet, the culture of our invisible community was hidden from me. Living and growing in the world as it was, I often felt like I had been kidnapped and forced…

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