shOUT!

Hi everybody. Niamh here, I Hope you are all well and good and enjoying the sunshine we are having in beautiful Galway and of course those of you who are living  further a field. : )

On Saturday April 10th, as part of the BeLonG To Youth Service’s STAND UP! Campaign against homophobic bullying of lgbt young people, we did a collage of positive lgbt celebrities.  There was quite a range of people who ended up on our collage, we had musicians, athletes, politicians, artists, philosophers!  It was nice to see people from all walks of life who are out and proud of their sexuality.

I have the utmost admiration for the STAND UP campaign and the light it is shedding on homophobia.  It’s fantastic and a reminder to us all to never let anyone make you feel ashamed of who you love.  There is never an excuse for homophobia- ever. Do not tolerate it. If you are experiencing homophobia or bullying of any kind, don’t suffer in silence.  Confide in someone you trust. A problem shared is always a problem halved.

A big thank-you to all who contributed to our collage on Saturday.  Thank-you to Sara who handmade sweeties in the shape of mini burgers and fries, they were delicious and like little pieces of art!!

It was lovely to see our final piece come together and to see the different images of all the successful lgbt celebrities who are successful are in their own right. I encourage all of you to check out the collage when you’re next in the shOUT! space.

Of course I must add when I am here, that while it is great to have these famous and successful lgbt rolemodels who are people we can look up to, always remember “that the greatest success in life is to be yourself”.

Niamh