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Name: Jennifer Luu
Hometown: Alexandria, VA
Age: 27
Statement:
A long time ago, before I knew what was happening, a seed was planted in my head that told me I was unlovable. Deep down inside I always believed it, and it colored the way I lived my life, who I attracted into my life… everything.
I have lived in Virginia since I was born. Prior to 2006, Virginia state law banned same-sex unions. In 2006, voters in Virginia voted for a constitutional amendment that defined marriage as solely between one man and one woman and banned recognition of any legal status "approximat[ing] the design, qualities, significance, or effects of marriage." It was truly the last nail in the coffin for gay marriage rights in Virginia. And it devastated me. For the first time in my life, I felt an intense sorrow and mourning for my second-class rights that in this case, the citizens of my own home state had voted away. That Election night, my mother told me that my sister had once said to her that I could change from being a lesbian if I wanted to. My mother then said to me, “I hope you can change.” This was too much. I got off the phone with my mother and sobbed my eyes out. In between breaths, I was able to hear the song that happened to be playing in my room at the time—a song called “Some Day You Will Be Loved.”
Everyone—everyone deserves to be loved, first and foremost by his or herself. How freakin’ lucky am I to get to go on tour on a bus that spreads that message across the country?
Sponsors:
Jennifer has been sponsored a total amount of $.
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