Dealing with homophobia as a student

As both a Latina and a lesbian, senior Andrea Reyes is a minority on two fronts. This makes it so there are more daily barriers for her to confront.

“I’ve had to overcome a lot of things in my life, namely discrimination and homophobia. I’ve had people say just really awful things to me, which is never fun.”

LGBTQ+ rights have been featured heavily in the news cycle over the last few years, for example with the legalization of gay marriage in 2015 and the ongoing debate about whether religion can be used as a trump card against serving all people, regardless of sexual orientation. It can be difficult to watch these events play out in the newspaper, Reyes said.

“Especially in our current political climate, it’s like your life is just a political debate. To be reduced to a debate topic feels dehumanizing sometimes.”

By trying to advocate for herself and others, Reyes says that there is also good that comes from being a sexual minority, despite the roadblocks it presents.

“It’s taken a long time to love myself for [being a lesbian] but I think it’ll be worth it in the end,” Reyes said.