Family Equality launches “Letters from Home” campaign to uplift the voices of LGBTQ+ families.
New York, NY — At a time when LGBTQ+ families continue to face discrimination and misunderstanding, a new storytelling campaign from Family Equality, the leading national nonprofit for LGBTQ+ families, is amplifying their voices and lived experiences. Letters from Home invites LGBTQ+ parents, child of LGBTQ+ parents, grandparents or extended family members, or allies to share personal letters that highlight the love, resilience, and everyday moments that define their families.
Through personal stories, Letters from Home seeks to foster understanding, challenge misconceptions, and celebrate the universal experiences that connect all families. Selected letters will be shared across digital platforms throughout 2025, offering a powerful glimpse into the realities, challenges, and joys of LGBTQ+ family life.
“Every family has a story, and in the face of rising challenges, sharing those stories is an act of resilience,” said Tonya Agnew, Vice President, Communications & Marketing. “Our Letters from Home campaign is about showing the world that LGBTQ+ families are loving and strong, and a part of every community. We must counter negative narratives about LGBTQ+ families to ensure that truth, love, and lived experiences — not misinformation and fear — shape public understanding and policy.”
The campaign launches with the first letter from LGBTQ+ icon, Denise Brogan-Kator.
Family Equality hopes to collect a minimum of one letter from each U.S. state and also welcomes international letter writers.
How to Participate
Are you an LGBTQ+ parent? Do you have an LGBTQ+ parent? Are you a grandparent whose grandchildren have an LGBTQ+ parent? Or are you an LGBTQ+ family ally? Write a letter from your perspective using one of the prompts below, or share your story in a different way that feels right to you. You don’t need kids or a partner to be considered a family or to participate. We mean “family” in the broadest sense – chosen or otherwise!
Determine your comfort level with sharing your name and community details. Anonymous letter writers are welcome as long Family Equality can confirm the writer’s identity. If requested, pseudonyms may used to protect the identity of the writer.
Letter Prompts
LGBTQ+ families and allies can submit letters that reflect on their personal journeys, with prompts including:
- Creating Our Family
- Share the journey of how your family came to be. What were the key milestones, challenges, or moments of joy?
- For example: Did you adopt, foster, use assisted reproduction, or blend families? How did you navigate the process, and what did you learn?
- Share the journey of how your family came to be. What were the key milestones, challenges, or moments of joy?
- Advocating for Our Family
- Reflect on a time when you stood up for your family or advocated for equality and acceptance.
- For example: Did you participate in a school meeting, legal process, or community event to ensure your family was treated with respect?
- Reflect on a time when you stood up for your family or advocated for equality and acceptance.
- An Everyday Moment that Matters
- Describe a simple, everyday moment that brings your family together and makes you feel connected.
- For example: A bedtime routine, a family meal, a holiday tradition, or a funny mishap that made you laugh together.
- Describe a simple, everyday moment that brings your family together and makes you feel connected.
- Overcoming Challenges
- Share a story about a challenge your family has faced and how you worked through it together.
- For example: Navigating conversations about identity, dealing with misconceptions, or finding a supportive community.
- Share a story about a challenge your family has faced and how you worked through it together.
- Intersectionality
- Share how your experiences as an LGBTQ+ family intersect with other aspects of your identity, such as race, ethnicity, disability, religion, immigration status, or socioeconomic background.
- For example: How have these overlapping identities shaped your journey, challenges, and triumphs?
- Share how your experiences as an LGBTQ+ family intersect with other aspects of your identity, such as race, ethnicity, disability, religion, immigration status, or socioeconomic background.
- A Letter to the World
- Write a letter sharing what you wish people understood about LGBTQ+ families.
- For example: What misconceptions would you like to correct, and what universal truths about love and family would you highlight?
- Write a letter sharing what you wish people understood about LGBTQ+ families.
Guidelines for Writers
- Be Authentic
- Write from your heart and share stories that feel meaningful to you. Authenticity helps your story connect with others.
- Keep it Relatable
- Focus on themes and moments that highlight universal family experiences, like love, perseverance, and connection.
- Length & Format
- Aim for 500–1,000 words, but shorter or longer submissions are welcome. Write in a conversational tone, as if you’re speaking to a friend.
- Privacy & Sensitivity
- Feel free to use pseudonyms or leave out identifying details to protect your family’s privacy.
- Diverse Perspectives Welcome
- We encourage submissions from families of all types — parents, children, grandparents, extended family members, or anyone with a unique perspective.
- We especially encourage letters from BIPOC and/or trans folks and other voices that need to be heard.
- Crediting You as the Writer
- Include a brief bio (optional) with your submission. Let us know how you’d like to be credited (full name, initials, pseudonym, or anonymous).
- Include a photo of you, the writer, and/or of your family (both optional) if you are open to it being included with your story.
Submit your letter or questions to communications@familyequality.org. Letters will be accepted and shared on a rolling basis throughout 2025. Letters may be edited for grammar or clarity. The writer will always have final approval prior to publishing.
About Family Equality
Family Equality is creating a world where everyone can experience the love, safety, and belonging of family. As the leading national organization for current and future LGBTQ+ families, we work to ensure that everyone has the freedom to find, form, and sustain their families by advancing LGBTQ+ equality through advocacy, support, storytelling, and education.
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Press Contact
Tonya Agnew,
Vice President,
Communications & Marketing
(765) 490-4709 / tagnew@familyequality.org