This year alone, our families have seen more than 500 bills introduced in state legislatures targeting their access to healthcare, community, art and expression, and more. And yet, amid this increasingly hostile landscape, LGBTQ+ families are holding tight to what matters most: LOVE, FAMILY, and FREEDOM.
In Family Equality’s new podcast, Shining Through The Clouds, we are proudly sharing the stories of real-life LGBTQ+ families and their remarkable resilience. We’ll hear from perspectives that too often go unheard: Queer families living in the deep South, young people being raised by LGBTQ+ parents, couples who have fought for decades to earn and preserve their freedoms, and more.
We’re thrilled to premiere Shining Through the Clouds on August 29. But if you, like us, can’t wait to dive in, enjoy our special sneak peek today!
Episode Transcript
Eric:
We are living in a day and time where we arguably have the most queer representation in media than we’ve ever had. Marriage equality has just been codified into law. Drag and ballroom culture have taken over the mainstream. There are clear strides that have been made in the journey to be fully seen. We’re here. We’re loud. We’re proud. And yet, never before have we seen such organized and blatant attacks being made on queer and trans people. Reproductive rights have been stripped away in most of the country. Trans people are viciously under attack in states like Florida and Texas and drag queen story hours are met with guns [and] threats of violence. So how do we hold this tension? How do we hold onto a sense of hope? What do we need people to know about our stories? This is Shining Through the Clouds, exploring the impact of political targeting on LGBTQ plus Life in America. I’m your host, Eric Fleming. Join us on a journey into the lives of queer families. Hear perspectives and stories from voices that we don’t hear too often. Queer people from rural middle America and from the deep south. We’ll meet people like Jayden, a Gen Z-er living in Ohio with two lesbian moms.
Jadyn:
Watching them be able to express their love was unlike any marriage ceremony I’ve ever been to. I think it meant a lot more because for so long they couldn’t get married. I can’t even imagine not being able to marry the person that I love.
Eric:
Couples like Todd and Jeff, who have been fighting legislative battles for decades.
Jeff:
You can feel the anger and the frustration that, that our community has. But we are seeing people that are volunteering more, donating more, really getting more involved. And we continue in our activism. And when we’re out, um, leading by example and, you know, really trying to get people involved
Eric):
And families like Scarlet and Crystals who just wanna live a normal life.
Escarlett:
We’re not big on political things, like listen to it every day. And because I feel that the more we listen to it, the more scared I feel and the least I know about it. At least I know that I’m feeling protective, that my kids are fine. That, you know, we try to also talk to our kids, like if people say things at school or talk to us so that way we can help you understand our life.