Running head: Cultural immersion c 1

Cultural Immersion Assignment C

Jeremy D. Williams
Georgia State University

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Abstract

This paper is intended to shed some light onto the ally in the LGBTQQIAAP acronym.
When usually talking about the struggles of the LGBT community the allies of the community
are nothing more than an afterthought. This paper served as a way to shed some light onto those
often unrecognized members and see how being a part of this marginalized population can have
an adverse effect on their lives as well as such as hate crimes, stereotyping, disenfranchisement,
and many other consequences all for having the strength and courage to try and uplift and
support a marginalized population. This paper will also discuss a few of the ways in which we
can combat stereotypes about the community.

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Cultural Immersion Assignment C

The third cultural immersion assignment focused on the ally part of the acronym
LGBTQQIAAP which according to urban dictionary, stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual,
transgendered, queer, questioning, intersex, asexual, allies and pansexual(urbandictionary.com
2011). An ally is A straight person that supports the LGBT (QQIAAP) community.
(urbandictionary.com 2011). The ally who decided to do the interview was a African American
female nursing student named Jessica who identified as an ally and a Seventh-Day Adventist
which resulted in a very interesting interview.
The Interview
The interview took place in her college dorm room on a quite Monday morning. The first
question she was asked pertained to the stereotypes concerning the LGBT community she herself
had encountered. She recalled things like people assuming that all members of the community
were flamboyant and that many learned their behavior from someone who was around them
growing up. Another stereotype she was quick to point out is that several times she has heard
people comment that shes too pretty to be gay. This is a very interesting quote because it
undermines the legitimacy of lesbian relationships in particular because it plays upon the idea
that only ugly women or those thought to be ugly turn lesbian, once again placing a persons life
into the category of a choice. This is in direct contrast to Adrienne Rich and her ideas on what
she called a lesbian continuum.

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According to Rich (n.d.): If we consider the possibility that all womenfrom the infant
suck-ling at her mother s breast, to the grown woman experiencing orgasmic sensations
while suckling her own child, perhaps recalling her mothers milk smell in her own, to
two women like Virginia Woolfs Chloe and Olivia, who share a laboratory,50 to the
woman dying at ninety, touched and handled by womenexist on a lesbian continuum,
we can see our-selves as moving in and out of this continuum, whether we identify ourselves as lesbian or not.

Growing up as an ally for the LGBT community she often faced critiques and personal
attacks from people, even her own family. Growing up as an ally she was told not be friends with
gay people because they are going to hell and being friends with them would essentially
condemn her as well. When asked to why her family would respond this way she cited her
religion and its teachings as the primary caused. This is not an uncommon problem however.
According to Lum (2011), Historically organized religion has condemned any type of sexual
activity that deviated from the so-called heterosexual norm.(p.424). When questioned on her
own faith she described herself as more of a half way Seventh - day Adventist, meaning she
followed some but not all of the teachings. When questioned on rather or not someone had ever
came out to her and to explain their reaction she stated The only person to ever come out to me
was my best friend, and when he did he sort of whispered it like he thought I would hate him or
something. When asked what she thought future social workers could do to learn more about
the community she suggested several things. One of the things suggested was engaging in
programs that are supposed to help the gay community. The second thing she suggested was
reading about the community first to eliminate some stereotypes you may have.

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Before the Interview

Before the interview there were many assumptions about what it meant not only to be an
ally but what an ally would even look like. When the word LGBT ally comes to mind, the
immediate thought is of the stereotypical white woman who always wears a rainbow colored
article of clothing, is very politically active in ending the discrimination of gays in this country,
and is often loud. It was quite a shock to meet Jessica who was not only a person of color but
also not very politically engaged in ending discrimination against gays but none the less a
steadfast and loyal supporter of gay rights. Another assumption held before the interview is that
she would have a personal connection to the gay rights movement, as in a family member who
identified with the group, that assumption was completely wrong. Her open mindedness and
support of this particular marginalized group begun early on at a very young age. In her words I
realized early on that the world wasnt the black and white simple picture I was led to believe.
This means that she was able to effectively suppress her personal homophobia, which according
to Adams (2013), personal homophobia refers to a personal belief system (a prejudice) that
LGBT people either deserve to be pitied as unfortunate beings who are powerless to control their
desires or should be hated.(p.381).
After the Interview
After the interview it was very clear that many of the assumptions held about Jessica and
individuals like her were quite wrong. What was expected and what presented itself were two
completely different things. Throughout the interview Jessica remained pleasant and at ease,
talking at a leisurely pace and in a friendly tone. Her overall attitude was one that allowed the
interview to run smoothly and uninterrupted as well as make even the toughest questions seem

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easy to ask. The only time she seemed even remotely bothered is when she was asked about her
family and their views. Further questioning revealed that she was a little embarrassed about some
of her familys more traditional values about certain social issues. Overall the interview with
Jessica was insightful in many ways and allowed me to learn some important things about what it
means to be an ally, an often overlooked but greatly appreciated letter in the acronym.

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References
Adams, M., Blumenfield, W., Castaneda, C., Hackman, H., Peters, M., & Zuniga, X. (2013). Readings
for diversity and social justice (Third ed.). Routledge.
Ally. (2011). Urban Dictionary. Retrieved from http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?
term=LGBTQQIAAP
Lum, D. (2011). Culturally competent practice: A framework for understanding diverse groups and
justice issues (4th ed.). Belmont, CA: Brooks/Cole
Rich, A. (n.d.). Compulsory Heterosexuality And Lesbian Existence (1980). Journal of Women's
History, 11-48.