Being a trans ally – no matter who you are – creates a much more hopeful future for trans people.
People who know me know my infinite love for Olly Alexander. But he isn’t just a celebrity crush, or singer I enjoy listening to, he’s so much more than that!
Olly is someone I can relate to and – more importantly – a person who has shown through and through that he is a trans ally. Seeing someone so boldly and proudly being a trans ally on stage and in the media really gives me a lot of inspiration. By using his voice to speak up for trans people, he makes me feel hopeful that as a trans man, I am accepted by such a superstar!
Growing up LGBTQ+ can be tough for many people and Olly hasn’t shied away from speaking about this in his BBC documentary Growing Up Gay. Throughout his teenage years he had a hard time at school, which is something I can really relate to because of how homophobia along with transphobia impacted my mental health.
Watching that documentary, I found I had similar struggles to him, particularly when it came to being bullied for being LGBTQ+ throughout school. I admire how he’s grown in confidence and is so open and honest about his experiences. It’s a truly amazing thing watching someone you really look up to grow as a person through their career!
Growing up, I didn’t realise that you can be trans and live a successful, happy and fulfilling life. I may now volunteer as a Just Like Us ambassador, meeting tons of other LGBTQ+ friends and speaking to secondary school pupils about what it’s like to be trans, but it wasn’t an easy road here.
I struggled for years trying to deny who I was and didn’t know how to tell people that I didn’t feel right with the pronouns she/her. Now I can proudly say that I’m a bisexual trans man.
Whether it’s been listening to Olly Alexander’s music, watching his documentary, seeing him perform or streaming It’s A Sin, he really has given me hope on this journey by being so openly himself and a vocal trans ally.
Olly’s music is very catchy, inviting and I feel I have a connection with a few of the things he sings about. In one of his newer songs called ‘Starstruck’, I love how upbeat and positive the energy is. I find it really helps me to be kinder to myself when I feel low or I’m experiencing a lot of gender dysphoria.
For anyone that doesn’t know, gender dysphoria is when you feel discomfort with your body because your biological sex characteristics don’t match your identity and it’s something I experience regularly, but it’s different for some trans people.
What makes Olly a good trans ally is that when being interviewed, on stage and anytime he has been asked about trans people he has stood by them and talked about being supportive as a whole community. When talking about being LGBTQ+ he doesn’t just talk about being gay but talks about all aspects of being queer and highlighting that there needs to be changes in society to help younger generations, no matter where your sexuality or gender identity sits on the spectrum.
Being an LGBTQ+ role model isn’t always easy when being in the view of the public eye. There are many artists, actors and people in the entertainment industry who don’t use their platform to advocate for us even though at least one person they know is probably part of the LGBTQ+ community. One thing I really love about Olly is that he is openly gay and uses every opportunity to be involved in positive change for LGBTQ+ young people.
We can all work together to help create a kinder, positive, and safe environment for all LGBTQ+ people. Whether your platform is a huge stage like Olly Alexander’s, or just your work colleagues or friends, using your platform to actively support trans people helps younger generations to be accepting and become allies.
So thank you, Olly, for inspiring more people to be trans allies and inspiring me – a young, bisexual trans man – to be fully myself.
Charlie is an ambassador with Just Like Us, the LGBT+ young people’s charity. If you’d like to volunteer to speak in schools on their Ambassador Programme, sign up now.
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