Ash Beckham recently spoke in Bolder about not using the phrase “so gay” as an insult. Embarrassingly, when I was in college I once described someone as a c$@!-sucker in front of a gay friend. He calmly and kindly explained to me that the word was a slur for homosexual, explained why, and told me he found it offensive. I was horrified. I was also enlightened. I’m so grateful that he had the guts and heart to call me out. We are only in the rarest of Facebook contact ten years later, but he forever made me a better person. Ash says in her speech that “when you hear someone describe something pejoratively as ‘so gay’ it is an opportunity for connection and conversation not to be missed.” I hope that I, like my college friend, can be a source for continued understanding and acceptance in my community.

“Say what you mean and mean what you say because the words that you choose matter.”

(Thanks Joanna!)