‘That’s so gay’ haunted me at school – why is it still so common now?

(Image: Pixabay)

The bell rings on an icy winter’s morning. I step through the school gates, dressed in my crisp white shirt, pleated skirt and school blazer. To my right, a group of boys are laughing and mocking each other: “That’s so gay, mate!”

What they don’t know is that I’m a young, closeted lesbian. What they don’t realise is that their appropriation of the label “gay” as a derogatory term, under the guise of “banter”, will later come to haunt me, damaging my mental health as I come to terms with my own sexuality.

It took me years to figure it out, but today I proudly identify as a lesbian. I know now that being a lesbian is a beautiful and wonderful thing. However, I didn’t always feel this

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