Elle


Hey, I’ve just turned 18 and I’ve only just started coming out to people; I’ve yet to come out to my family. I live in Shoreham-by-Sea, outside of Brighton. I’ve now been coming to Allsorts for just under a year. What annoys me is that many people believe you have to fit into a certain stereotype. When I came out, some people didn’t believe me. This was mainly based on my appearance. Before coming out the clothes I wore didn’t fit the stereotype. I wore cardigans and low cut tops, I’d only just got my first pair of Dr. Martens. Obviously stereotypes are slowly breaking down but it’s going to take a very long time for them to completely disappear. I wear what I want. That’s to do with my personality and not my sexuality though I’m slightly influenced by others with the same sexual orientation because over the last year I’ve begun wearing more masculine clothes, even men’s clothing. But it’s more fashionable for girls to wear men’s clothes, so I guess I’ve been influenced a bit by both my sexuality and my surroundings.

My favourite pair of shoes are Doc Marten boots. Twenty years ago the stereotype was that Doc Marten boots were predominantly worn by lesbians, but nowadays everyone wears them. They used to be a brand worn only by lesbians and punks, and I guess the fact that everyone wears them annoys me slightly. They wear these manly boots in bright pink or flowery patterns, it defeats the point.

Another thing that annoys me is how people use gay as a derogatory term to describe things they dislike, but I am guilty of double standards. I do use the word gay in other contexts but always when I’m joking or being sarcastic. I discovered that I was a lesbian at school, and this was where people were using gay in a negative way. People were ignorant because they didn’t know anyone personally who was gay as not many people came out that early – I could count the people on one hand. I’m still incredibly worried about coming out to my parents but I’m not scared to be openly gay in public.

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