Nicole + Andrew
What does your 2SLGBTQ+ identity mean to you?
N: Being queer and nonbinary not only are frameworks to help me better understand myself, they're frameworks that allow me to explore the world differently. For me, my identities honor those who came before me and are a promise to future generations that I will continue to fight to make the space for them to live out loud, as their whole selves, with the safety not just to survive, but to thrive.
A: I've recently begun to embrace my identity. It means I can be my best self for the first time after thirty years.
What makes you feel empowered in your identity?
N: I feel most empowered in my identity when I am rooting my advocacy and actions in the history of our movement, and in the kind of future I am trying to build alongside folks across movements in our collective fight for liberation. I feel most empowered in my identity in spaces and with people who who see my queerness, my nonbinary identity, as an invitation rather than a challenge.
A: That I can begin to try to be as happy as possible as myself. Some days are harder than others so being able to chameleon myself on off days is great.
What is one (or more) of your favorite things about yourself?
N: I love my ability to think about how we share information and build narratives, and then my ability to collaborate to make that happen. I love my wonderfully chaotic sense of fashion. I love my commitment to continue to work on staying tender in the face of so much harm.
A: I have a new hobby or fixation every two weeks so I'm always interested in what people do and those details of how they do it.
What is your favorite part about the 2SLGBTQ+ community in Oklahoma? What would you like to see more of?
N: One time, a queer friend from outside of Oklahoma came to visit, and after a morning around the city, asked if everyone I knew in Oklahoma was queer. I love that for us. Just the sense of community, the way we hold on to our people once we find them, the spaces we carve out for one another to be ourselves. I think what I hope to see more of as we respond to this present moment, is folks showing up as accomplices for trans, Two Spirit, and GNC community members. For some folks in community, allyship doesn't always extend to our most marginalized community members, and I hope we'll lovingly challenge one another on that, and work to build, together, the future where we all have the safety to thrive.
A: That I can see a group or person and feel immediately comfortable and not self conscious.