Tag Archives: fashion

Josh, Law Student, San Francisco

photo by Kevin Truong

photo by Kevin Truong

Josh, in his own words: “When I was a little kid I had gymnast Barbie. She was awesome. So awesome that I wanted to bring her to show and tell. My mom sat me down and said, “Josh, if you take her to school, the kids WILL make fun of you” to which I responded, “I don’t care, I love her.”

She was right of course. But as I rode home on the bus in a seat by myself–while everyone else squeezed in three to a seat–I was smiling because I got to sit next to the coolest Barbie of 1997.

Being gay, for me, is telling that story at a party and having an entire room of people nod their heads and laugh in understanding.”

Tom, DJ and Community Activist, San Francisco

photo by Kevin Truong

photo by Kevin Truong

Tom, in his own words: “(Being gay has) been a gift for me! My worldview and creative output are so shaped by my being queer and i’m pretty proud of both. The people i’ve met, the places i’ve gone, the things i’ve accomplished, so many of those things wouldn’t have happened if I weren’t queer and I wouldn’t trade them for anything.

(With regards to challenges) Aside from occasionally having ‘faggot’ shouted at me on the street and a few tumultuous teenage years (I haven’t had) too many to speak of. I’m sure that there have been more subtle challenges but my life as a gay men has been largely without incident and I’m very thankful and lucky to be able to say that.

(The gay scene in San Francisco is) pretty spectacular. When I first moved here I felt like looking at the queer scene was like standing on the edge of the ocean — It was so vast and had far too much depth to ever understand. Having been here for eight years now it certainly doesn’t appear as vast as it once does but its still very impressive. It’s amazing living in a city where there’s such a diversity of experiences and interests that there isn’t a ‘gay scene’ to speak of but rather communities within that that congregate around other interests and just happen to be queer.

(With regards to coming out) I’ve been out for 11 years now, and it’s been mostly uphill since that moment. I met my first other gay boy my age when I was a sophomore in High School, fell in love with him, had my heart ripped out, told everyone it was happening because I didn’t want to be alone in love/despair and that was pretty much that. My friends were all mostly supportive and my parents ultimately were too. Now they come to my queer parties, ask about how my boyfriends are doing and all that.”

Yubi, Architecture Student, New York City

photo by Kevin Truong

photo by Kevin Truong

photo by Kevin Truong

photo by Kevin Truong

photo by Kevin Truong

photo by Kevin Truong

photo by Kevin Truong

photo by Kevin Truong

photo by Kevin Truong

photo by Kevin Truong

photo by Kevin Truong

photo by Kevin Truong

Yubi, in his own words: “Dear Kevin,

“What does being gay mean to you?”

It is the first sentence in the questionnaire you have sent me. After the photo shoot, for the past few days, I have been having intense introspective thoughts on what it means to be a gay man. It is a question I had never tried to answer before, consciously and subconsciously. Not that I wanted to repress my sexuality, I think it was that I was afraid to give a definite label to my own identity.

After the days of self-examination, I came to a conclusion that my answer to the said question is ‘I do not know’. It is a vague concept that is still hard for me to grasp and give a clear description to. All I know at this point is that being gay is a significant and important part of me that affects me as a person one way or another. It is something I will know more and more, day after another. It will be a long journey that may be bumpy at times. Maybe I will never figure it out, know the absolute truth. And I will be fine with that, as long as I feel comfortable in my own skin and am proud of my orientation.

I thank the Gay Men Project for giving me this chance to sincerely evaluate who I am as a gay man, as a person, for the first time in my life. It feels great to know that there are people out there supporting my journey of finding myself.

Thank you,
Yubi.”