Jones 1 Name-Anna Jones Instructor- Professor Drumgoole Class -ENG 102-03 Date- LGBTQ Community Since the beginning of my freshman year of high school, I have struggled with confusion over my sexual orientation. When I was eight years old, I shared my first kiss with a female, but I had never heard of the LGBTQ community until that time. I had already been hopelessly in love with a dozen different males by the time I eventually made it to my senior year of high school. Yet, it was at this period that I was first exposed to the LGBTQ community and discovered that I identify as a bisexual person.Young people's sexual orientation and gender identity/expression are significant parts of who they are. When it comes to matters of sexuality and gender, children and young people have varying developmental tasks. For instance, some young people may still be trying to figure out their sexual orientation, while others may have been open about it since they were very young. Gender identity and role exploration are natural and healthy aspects of maturation. Individuals take different paths to discovering and articulating their sexual orientation and gender identity. Expressing one's sexual orientation and gender identity is not a binary choice and can be influenced by one's upbringing, peers, and society at large. Being a member of the LGBTQ community presents a variety of difficulties. To begin with, this group still lives in an atmosphere where sexual orientation prejudice is prevalent. Although society is more tolerant of LGBTQ lifestyles now than in previous decades, LGBTQ persons face Jones 2 tremendous scorn and negative pressure. According to Fetner et al. (2012), once a person is active in the LGBTQ community, he or she becomes simple to recognize by the rest of society. This may cause a reaction and bring to light some of the hostility against LGBTQ individuals that has remained concealed as long as the LGBTQ persons are not recognizable. As a result, being a part of the community exposes me to being attacked by intolerant individuals with strong anti-gay beliefs. If I had not been a member of society, I may have gone undiscovered by such individuals and therefore avoided prejudice. There is a lot of disagreement and infighting among the community. At times, it seems like the LGBTQ community is made up of five distinct groups that have been merged but do not share common aims or interests. Individuals in the LGBTQ community are more inclined to draw toward others who share their identity and experiences (Nash, 2011). Lesbians, like homosexuals, bisexuals, transgender people, and queers, constitute a sub-community within the LGBTQ community. Members in the LGBTQ community have a strong sense of identification and belonging despite their challenges because they share the same challenges. According to Fetner, Elafros, and Bortolin (2012), the LGBTQ community provides a safe space for persons who may otherwise feel isolated due to their sexual orientation. It's great to have roommates that are well-versed in and engaged in the same topics as myself. Also, there are many intelligent individuals around who may be able to teach me anything. My experience in the LGBTQ community has provided me with a welcoming group of individuals who are able to listen to me and provide sound advice and encouragement because of their shared experiences. I've picked up a lot of wisdom from the other members of the group that I've put to good use in my own life. When individuals of different backgrounds get together, they might forget about the prejudice and discrimination they may face in their daily lives. Here, I don't have to worry about what others will think of me if I speak my mind. My Jones 3 emotional well-being improves when I'm in the company of others who understand me. Individuals in the LGBTQ community who don't feel accepted are more likely to experience depression, thoughts of self-harm or drug usage if they don't have a supportive social network (Fetner, et al., 2012). Positively, members of the LGBTQ community ensure that their peers experience acceptance. It is essential to a person's mental and emotional well-being to find their place in a community, and the capacity to do so is necessary in order to accomplish this goal. Throughout this essay that I have written, I have made it abundantly apparent that I identify with the LGBTQ+ community and that I consider myself to be a member of that group. My involvement in the LGBTQ community has had a substantial and beneficial effect on my life in a variety of different ways, and this has been the case for a number of different reasons. I have never previously encountered such a high level of love and acceptance anywhere else in the world as I do in this group. It is unlike anything else I have ever encountered.
