Jayson Flores

1. Someone else has your face.

Both are pushed down in society, giving them a sense of understanding and empathy, because they each know what it feels like to be judged before you even open your mouth.

Fun fact: I easily convinced my grandmother that Chad Michaels was in fact Cher. That’s top quality drag.

2. You try to fit the homonormative gay ideal.

What’s even more tragic than the shocking statistics is that the torture for victims often goes beyond the crime itself, extending to the injustice they suffer upon reporting any incident(s).

I have this fear, a feeling that forces itself into my brain as reality, that I won’t achieve any of my goals. The thoughts paralyze me and yet drive the adrenaline through my body as I begin to mentally and emotionally panic.

Our lives become a book that no one else seems to read. But herein lies some of the beauty of this entrapment in reality and hurt. You can read this story. You can become the hero in this epic of your life.