By: Codiac Wilson
I have lived my entire life in the beautiful area known as Appalachia. These mountains have left a permanent print on my heart, my mind, and my spirit. My whole life has been a combination of bluegrass music, camping trips to the family-owned cabin on the lake, snapping green beans on the back porch with the elders in my family, and fighting for equivalence for all people.
Appalachia overall is an amazing place. It is full of culture, beautiful landscapes, and generations of stories. However, Appalachia seems to be very set in its old ways, which isn't always a great thing for folks who reside here. One of several groups of folks that are discriminated against are the folks of the LGBT community.
I, personally, have been out as queer for six years, and as transgender for around six months. People generally took the news that I was queer a lot better than they did that I identified with something other than my assigned gender at birth. While the general public's acceptance is not vital to my personal transition, it does make it much harder for me to be able to safely transition. I face difficulty daily in having to repetitively validate my identity in the eyes of the world, and in the eyes of these mountains especially.
I do find it worth mentioning that Appalachia is slowly progressing; Eastern Kentucky had their first Pride festival in October of 2018, there are a plethora of youth lead organizations that fight for equality of all people, and in general being queer isn't nearly as taboo as it once was. The general media is slowly starting to celebrate people and their differences overall.
A 16-year-old Kentuckian said that they experienced "more negative [reactions] than positive," reactions to their coming out. This is something that a lot of folks face when coming out, regardless of the area they're from. The way that a person reacts when someone comes out can be a vital thing to the mental health of the person coming out.
Coming out, no matter the age of the person, takes a lot of trusts. It also takes a lot of mental strength for the person coming out, because of the anxiety that goes hand and hand with coming out. Also, when youth (-18) come out to family, they are faced with the risk of being kicked out, disowned, and a lot of other things that can have a negative impact on their mental health.
"[Appalachia is] so homely, if you have a good family or at least a good circle I think you'll never want to leave." An 18-year-old West Virginian states, "The racism, ignorance, and intolerance some people have is mind-boggling." They continue. Seeing both the good and bad of Appalachia is something that the media typically fails to do.
The people of Appalachia are often portrayed as ignorant mountain folk with no real sense of progression or culture. The truth is that Appalachian folk have a very deep and rich culture, and they are slowly progressing. Most youths in Appalachia are aware that they have resources, but aren't safely able to obtain them because of an unaccepting environment that they currently can't leave.
In 2018, over half of the transgender males that took part of the Human Rights Campaign's survey, said that they had attempted suicide, 29.9 percent of transgender females said that they had attempted, and 41.8 of non-binary youth said that they had attempted. These numbers are alarmingly high, and most of them are the direct effect of youth not being accepted in the environment they are forced to exist in.
LGBT folks of all ages are discriminated against due to their sexual orientation or gender expression. These folks regularly get evicted from their homes, fired or denied from jobs, beaten on the streets and denied safety in the eyes of the law. In 2018, the LGBT community faced a lot of hate from the US Government, and even more from their local governments.
Kentucky alone has had a history of not allowing LGBT folks the rights of marriage. With one clerk, in particular, being thrown in jail when she wouldn't allow two men to have a marriage license. While there were people celebrating her 'fight' against LGBT equality, there were many people who opposed her.
Appalachia is covered in religion, with a church on every block. Most of these churches make it a point to discriminate against the LGBT community, and that causes a very large disconnect between most of the community and the church.
With the very obvious disconnect between LGBT folks and the overall population of Appalachia who is set in believing that the LGBT community is a choice against them and their religion, it seems nearly impossible for the community to want to stay in these mountains. But, the community of LGBT folks in Appalachia is thriving in 2019.
While typically the Appalachians seem to turn sexual orientation and gender identity into a political argument, Appalachians are beginning to understand and accept the ideology of difference of sexual orientation and gender expression. People are slowly beginning to realize the harmful consequences of their actions. This slow change is a phenomenal sign for the LGBT population of Appalachia.
Many of the youth of Appalachia contribute their fear to their family. A 17-year-old West Virginian told me, "I would be physically harmed by most people in my family [if I came out]." Sadly, this is the reality for a lot of LGBT youth. The fear that manifests itself in the hearts of these folks can develop a series of issues in a young person mind. "I contribute my anxiety, my self-harm, eating disorders, depression, and my insomnia to the fear that I'm not safe at home due to my sexuality." I've heard this from many high school students in Eastern Kentucky.
Pride festivals have begun making their way into Eastern Kentucky, with one happening in October of 2018. "It was better than I could've ever expected it to be, it was small because we're a small town, but it was perfect." This pride festival was a large step for equality in Appalachia, and it helped a lot of LGBT folks of all ages finally feel less alone.
LGBT folks in general typically feel like they're alone, with only 4.5% of American adults identify as LGBT. When folks are able to be in an environment that is inclusive and accepting they get a sense of family, which is something that every young person needs.
Appalachia is a homely place, a place of culture, a place where generations have grown and learned to speak the language of these beautiful mountains.
Being queer in Appalachia means a lot of things, it means having politics thrown into your identity, it means getting denied jobs, but it also means having pride. Being Appalachian is a unique combination of ups and downs, it’s a combination of love for the mountains and distaste for the mindsets of most.
Appalachia is changing, and its a change for the better. I hope to be here when the region finally breathes pure acceptance.