I came out when I was 13, something that was very difficult, even in 2002. Let me illustrate this for you with a personal story. I am a cisgender white gay man and I know this tale all too personally. We have only recently seen real intersectional representative members of the LBGTQ+ community in media and entertainment, and that has not been without a fight from creatives to tell their stories. There is more than just the media’s image of the cisgender, primarily white, gay man or lesbian woman – and it has taken far too long for us all to appreciate that. Now I am going to say the quiet part out loud. The LGBTQ+ community has fought for years to show we are not a monolith, but rather we are individuals, with a great deal more depth than the media representations of LGBTQ+ archetypes generated by a majority of heteronormative creatives. The battle for representation, in media and entertainment, among the LGBTQ+ community is a story fraught with discrimination, exclusion and the fight against heteronormative control of the LGBTQ+ image in society.

Jack Harlow Perform 'Industry Baby' & 'Montero' | 2021 VMAs | Courtesy of MTV