“A rising tide lifts all boats”- supporting LGBTQ folks makes everyone safer
(About the post title: “A rising tide lifts all boats” is an ancient Chinese saying, quoted by US President John F. Kennedy in 1963.)
Advocating for LGBTQ folks doesn’t just benefit LGBTQs. Everyone is safer when everyone is included. Here are some examples:
From an interview with Valerie Green, a transgender woman, on Latter-Gay Stories: A less-active person decided to return to church because if there was space for Valerie, there was space for her.
Having a Gay-Straight Alliance in a school reduces suicide across the board, because the message is “You can be different; it’s safe here.” Read more in the Smithsonian Magazine, with this subtitle: “In schools with GSAs, heterosexual boys were half as likely to attempt suicide.”
Affirmation President Nathan Kitchen reported on his invitation from BYU to participate in a two-day roundtable conference to help build better relations between BYU and the LGBTQ community. Kitchen said, “Science demonstrates that when schools implement and support an on-campus sexual, gender and allyship organization, it increases mental health and decreases suicidal thoughts and attempts for all students, not just LGBTQ students.”
Making the world safer for LGBTQ folks is a worthy end in itself, preserving and amplifying the beauty and richness of each voice. But it also has the pleasant side effect of making the world safer for everyone.
-Marci
Photo by Vidar Nordli-Mathisen on Unsplash