For Gay Pride Month, Billboard asked numerous pop culture luminaries to write “love letters” to the LGBTQ community. Below, Scottish singer-songwriter KT Tunstall shares hers. Read more Pride Month love letters here.
I want to tell you that I believe in people.
I want to tell you that I believe we fall in love with other human beings, sometimes once, sometimes more, sometimes surprisingly, sometimes unrequited.
I want to tell you that I believe an essential way of nurturing my own happiness is by nurturing happiness in others.
I want to tell you a story about my younger brother Daniel, who was born profoundly deaf. He missed out on kids playground chatter, peripheral gossip, what the actual words were when kids would shout across the grass and taunt each other.
Fast forward, he is in his early twenties, and we are sitting in a local bar, talking.
It transpired in that bar conversation that Dan had absolutely no idea that kids with red hair got bullied for it.
“Why?” He asked, totally incredulous.
“I don’t know,” I said weakly, “maybe because they look different.”
“But…they don’t.” said Dan.
“No. They don’t.” I said.
This story always reminds me how I feel about you, the LGBQT community. Incredulous that conditioning has the power to completely shut down our natural desire to question things.
Incredulous that we can subscribe to ways of thinking that not only harms ourselves, but can deeply harm others around us.
I want to tell you that I truly believe a day will come when we human beings look back at this time and laugh through the sadness at how ridiculous and cruel and misguided society could be towards people within your community.
Like us looking back at medieval barbarism.
I’m sorry it can hurt so bad.
I’m sorry some people take their fear and hold it against you.
Please know that so many of us wish to hold you as high as we can, cheer wildly for you, and love you. There is nothing else like you. You are incredible.
I want to say Thank You.
KT Tunstall xxx
