Sachi and Colleen are both 24 years old and they were each other’s first experience with a same sex partner. They lived in New York City at the time and were good friends for two years before realizing they were in love.
Sachi comes from a very catholic family in the Philippines. The country itself is also pretty conservative and it’s common to see people sharing archaic mindsets such as no sex before marriage, must get married and have kids after a certain age, etc. So being openly out to her family and friends back home is still a work in progress. In her family, she has told her mom and her sister about her sexuality, but none of her friends know. She says they’re all in a different vibe, obsessing over marriage and children, and she doesn’t feel comfortable sharing this part of her life with them.
Colleen, as well, has never publicly said to her family that she’s a lesbian, but she knows that they are aware. For her, falling in love with Sachi and giving space for this feeling to grow felt like a whole new world was opening up in front of her. To be raised in a family where being heterosexual is the only option allowed can limit your vision and keep you from listening to your desires and preferences, and Colleen believes that this is what often happens to our parents’ generation.
Sachi and Colleen live together in a predominantly white, cis, straight neighborhood. They are often misread as friends or roommates. On one hand, that is a blessing to them because it saves a lot of explaining and spare potential homophobic offenses. On the other hand, though, it’s a curse because it shows how much society still stereotypes lesbian women and lesbian couples, who need to follow a certain archetype or look a certain way in order to be validated on their sexuality.
Compared to other places like NYC, Colleen and Sachi believe Boston has a lot to improve in terms of engaging in the LGTBQIA+ matter. They believe it’s important to promote events that can discuss our demands, as well as offer spaces where queer people can feel seen, welcome and especially safe.
(This post is part of a bigger series called LGBTQIA+plural. To understand the projet, click here. To see the full photo gallery, click here).
