Tag Archives: lgbt

A Note from José, in Mexico City…

José, in his own words: “Siempre me gustaron los hombres desde niño, aunque no sabía ni para qué (aunque después aprendí, jaja), aunque esta búsqueda fuera del sendero trillado no ha sido fácil. El luchar contra prejuicios propios y extraños me ha llevado a cuestionar mucho mi educación y el papel que me asignaron socialmente por ser el primogénito. De vez en cuando, me dejo robar un beso en la calle con todo el escándalo que conlleva.”

In English:

“I always liked men since childhood, but did not know why (although I learned later, haha), but this search off the beaten path has not been easy. The fight against prejudice and sundry has led me to question much my education and the role socially assigned to me as the firstborn. Occasionally , let myself steal a kiss in the street even with all the fuss involved.”

photo provided by José

Sepi, Social Worker, Jakarta, Indonesia

photo by Kevin Truong

Sepi, in his own words: “For me being gay is a destiny in my life, a feeling that is directly given by God, many people said that being gay is a choice but I totally disagree, because God never asked and gave me a chance to choose my sexual orientation.

Lots of people don’t know much about being gay and there are haters that strongly disagree about legalized same-sex relationships, but whether they know it or not true love begins with a feeling of the heart to another heart and doesn’t begin with sex to the other sex.

The challenge of my life as being gay was when I was 7 years old, and realizing I was a man who loved men, my struggling is how to love myself, trying to accept my sexual orientation because I live in a religious family environment, and when I was student in elementary school, I heard a phrase that “God loved His people,” since then I believe that God also loved me because I was created as a gay child.

I have a very unique story when I came out to my mom, when I was 20, I made a picture and I wrote the word in that picture “I’m sorry mom, I’m gay,” and I shared these images on my account on Facebook, and then my mom saw it. My mom left a comment on the picture and she said, “I’m feeling sad right now, maybe God has punished me for the sins I’ve done.” But I convinced my mom that no one is to blame on this case, “I said this is given from God.” And I’m very lucky because until now our relationship is very good and we became much closer, my mom just told me please be a good gay, and I’ll never forget the moment of that and I still keep the picture on my Facebook.

I was born and raised in Cianjur, West Java, which is a village and very homey. I had to walk about 20 minutes when I went to school, there is a conservative culture, so I only knew a little bit about the gay lifestyle. I tried to find information about being gay via social media, and at the end when I was 15 I began to knew about Top and Bottom terms, and after I finished my studies in high school when I was 17, I moved to the city of Jakarta, and here I knew what is the meaning of life, I can meet with many people who like me, in the city there are a lot of places for the gay community to gather like gay organizations, bars, parks, cafes, malls etc. Jakarta gives me with a lot of friends who helped me become a confident and modern gay.

(Advice to my younger self) Life as a gay man would not be easy, you will struggle to accept yourself, when you feel different, my advice is just to love yourself, follow your heart, because your heart will lead you to happiness, don’t listen to a bad word about your sexual orientation, but just listen if someone comments about your personality as a human, be friendly, stay humble, respect one another, because being a good gay is someone who has a good heart, and don’t forget to do the best with your attitude, because I love to set everything by attitude, enjoy your life and believe everyone can easily accept you as being gay.”

W, Marketing, Tokyo, Japan

photo by Kevin Truong

“W, in his own words: “I haven’t thought to myself about being gay recently. Maybe because of it becoming natural, in a way, or at least being gay in Tokyo. For instance, I have heard news about the ordinance that will be submitted at the local council in Tokyo for same sex couple registration. Also, I had my work experience as the editor for gay magazines and now in the arts, so that I may say I am lucky to be in a “liberal environment.”

When I did an interview with BUTT magazine about seven years ago, the editor in chief said something like this: “It’s becoming ordinary to be gay in Europe and getting boring.” I was so inspired and sympathized to what he said. Because I feel more comfortable being in an underground scene and have thought that art should be described with words like underground, cutting-edge and innovative.

In the past two years, I have lived a dual life as full-time worker and full-time student. i.e. I have been too busy doing these at the same time! I just submitted my master dissertation and am graduating this March. Through attending as many lectures as possible, contributing to classes, writing the dissertation, I could have precious experiences like meeting good friends, professors and books.

I haven’t come out to my family, so I haven’t got (a coming out) story to tell.

There’s gay scene but not gay community in Tokyo, I guess. The gay scene is in Shinjuku, bars, clubs and gay magazine offices are gathered now and then. But with rising internet sites and applications to meet people, the centeredness of Shinjuku is getting weaker. Maybe the reason that I feel that way is I was once in the scene djing at the club and the editor for the gay magazine, but not now.

(Advice I’d give my younger self) Be yourself, borrowing from DJ Danny Tenaglia’s track.”

THE GAY MEN PROJECT

The visual catalog of gay and queer men around the world.

Tag Archives: lgbt

A Note from José, in Mexico City…

Sepi, Social Worker, Jakarta, Indonesia

W, Marketing, Tokyo, Japan