[Special Guest] Naomi from Wear it Purple!

[Ben-RO]

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. I think a big part of it is also embracing aspects of yourself that you might not like as much, but instead of feeling shame over that you accept it while giving yourself the space to improve.

Well said! @DirtWitch!

[Naomi-wearitpurple]

One of the ways I support others to be proud of who they are is by working with Wear it Purple and trying to get more people across the country to celebrate Wear it Purple day, so everyone knows that they can feel safe and proud in their school or workplace.

[DirtWitch]

One of the good things about the Internet is that now there are so many different resources you can use to educate yourself on how to support LGBT folk and other marginalised people. I think one of the best ways you can show support is to read up on history and know your stuff...understand how LGBT people have historically been treated and how the modern movement was started by black and Latina trans women, the issues that LGBT people are facing now..and of course accept that you will make mistakes and to correct yourself and apologise when other people point it out!

[roseisnotaplant]

How do you support others to be proud of who they are?

But showing that you're an ally or whatever in little ways. Like by now I've worked out exactly who in my school is an active LGBT+ support person thing and that's really cool and sort of gives me the confidence to be proud of myself if that makes sense.

[May_]

@DirtWitch such an important point you just made about accepting and being open to the fact that you will make mistakes

[honky]

How do you support others to be proud of who they are?

I think supporting someone to be proud of who they are is all about encouragement, support and acknowledging who they are as a person. Not pushing our opinions forward and trying to change who they are. Accept who they are 

[Naomi-wearitpurple]

That's super interesting @DirtWitch, a really thought out response! I think you make some awesome points, especially at the end about making mistakes and correcting yourself. One big way to support rainbow people is by acknowledging that people use different pronouns. Many of us grew up only learning his and her or he and she, but there are so many more out there! Some people like using gender neutral pronouns like they and them. Sometimes I still slip up on this one with some of my closest friends, but correcting yourself if you do slip up, or making the effort to ask in the first place is also really empowering for rainbow people. One of the most important things is to not make any assumptions because everyone is an individual !

[roseisnotaplant]

OH MY GOD I LOVE THE TERM RAINBOW PEOPLE WHY HAVEN'T I HEARD OF THIS

[Naomi-wearitpurple]

It's my favourite! Easier than typing the acronym, but on a more serious note, it's really inclusive. The LGBTQI+ acronym continued to grow as more people identify in different ways, and sometimes people might feel excluded that their identity isn't in that set of letters. By using rainbow, everyone is included!

[roseisnotaplant]

I LOVE IT SO MUCH @Naomi-wearitpurple