After serving as one of the first out morning radio hosts in the country, I certainly thought there would be a line of LGBTQ+ media personalities to follow. That ended up not being the case, and I saw the results of that at a recent event where I was asked to speak. I even heard myself say to the audience, “This makes me want to be back on air,” before expressing my concerns.
For those unfamiliar with my tenure in Atlanta radio, I served on the morning shows of 99X, Q100, and B98.5 and spoke honestly about being a lesbian on each. People often ask how I was treated because of my sexuality, and I can honestly say each station was accepting and supportive, as was the majority of the audience. There were a few listeners who had issues with my openness, yet didn’t abandon listening to the show. In fact, I found I had more pushback by being an opinionated woman in general than by being a lesbian specifically.
The main benefit of being out on the air was the privilege of representing our community. I’m sure several would not be comfortable with that responsibility, but I embraced it and respected it. Despite our community being diverse in its own way, and my not having the same opinions or experiences as every gay person in the city, it was important that one of us was talking about their life in a normal way without shame or justification.
I was recently asked by the Atlanta chapter of the LGBTQ+ Real Estate Alliance to speak at an event highlighting the importance of straight allies in our lives. I brought with me Jeremy Powell, current Director of Podcasts at GPB and former radio producer for B98.5 and 99X, as my ally, and we fielded questions about our friendship.
During one question regarding coming out, I told the audience of the positive experience with my family and how you don’t know the outcome of that conversation until it happens. My family happened to embrace me while other panelists told the tragic and common story of abandonment by their family members. I said I realize I’m now old enough to be a mother to many in the audience, and if they needed a surrogate mother to care for them, I’d be happy to volunteer. The tears I saw reminded me of the aforementioned importance of representation.
Many in attendance are anxious about the state of our country and the impact our current administration could make on gay marriage. I found myself frustrated by the constant presence of worry in the lives of LGBTQ+ members, and more importantly, the lack of national leadership in this community. We are devoid of those loud voices from the past in most minority groups today, including our own, leaving many to feel isolated and hopeless.
That’s why I said to the crowd, “This makes me want to be back on air,” since those who aren’t afraid to speak their truth need to get louder. We need people to step forward, tell us we’re going to be ok, whatever happens, and remind others we exist and are important. If not you, then who?
