The LGBTQ+ community has always been a part of our society. Ever since gay marriage was legalized, more people have felt comfortable coming out about themselves. People know, when they come out, they will be judged by their peers. However, they don’t know what else can happen along their journey.

Some problems that LGBTQ+ people can face include; discrimination or bullying by others, the pressure of coming out, being accepted by others, and even mental health issues. As an LGBTQ+ adult goes through their life these problems are still there. Including things such as child adoption discrimination and the chance of being released from the military.

“I have faced people who are not accepting of LGBTQ+ people and have treated me differently because of that,” said Junior Ken Raines.

When it comes to the way LGBTQ+ people are treated by others, it can be negative or a positive outcome. “I feel, in my experience, that I’ve been able to be myself around most people I meet at our school. It’s definitely becoming a safer place for the community,” said Junior Jaxon Gray.

As more people are accepted into the LGBTQ+ community, society has started to change with the times and accept more of its LGBTQ+ members. Society has become a safer place for LGBTQ+ people to express who they truly are without being judged. Though it might not be 100% safe, it will continuously get better as the future nears.

Only LGBTQ+ people know how hard it can be to come out to their friends and family. They just want people to know the real them and accept them for who they are. No one wants to lose a family member over the truth. In quite a few cases, it happens.

A contestant, Jeffery Rudell, on a TV show, ‘Making It’, told his story. “My parents had a really bad reaction to learning I was gay—a very extreme and not a normal reaction—but I’ve learned over the years that it is frequent enough to be tragic. They didn’t accept it, they kicked me out, cut off all communication, and they maintained it ever since I was 18. It just ended very abruptly,” Rudell stated. He continued to state that years later he received a funeral wreath from his parents that read, ‘In memory of our dead son’.

Many members of the LGBTQ+ community have been victims of some type of discrimination. Recently in Arizona, a pharmacist refused to fill a transgender woman’s hormone pills. “I was finally going to start seeing my body reflect my gender identity and the woman I’ve always known myself to be,” Ms. Hall stated to the New York Times. Hall was yelled at by the pharmacist and he demanded Hall to explain why she needed the hormone pills. The pharmacist was later fired but the pain and embarrassment Hall felt can never be changed.

Many students have come and gone at Taylorsville over the years. As the years have gone by, the number of openly LGBTQ+ students has risen from 3.5% in 2012 to 4.5% in 2017 according to In U.S. Estimate of LGBT Population Rise published on Gallup. The future is becoming closer as each day goes by and we still don’t know what it holds in store for society.

“My hope for the future is that two men or two women holding hands can walk down the street without someone harassing them, that transgender people can use their correct bathrooms without having to prove themselves to anyone, and that people will become more accepting. I hope that people will see that LGBTQ+ people are just regular people,” said Raines.

As time progresses, we all hope to see a better future for the LGBTQ+ community. “I hope the world is a lot more accepting by the time our generation is the older generation. We’ve been saying it for many years but I really believe that by the time we are older, there will really be change in store,” said 2017 Taylorsville High graduate Katelyn Tanner.