Young LGBT people need to know their history, because they have to know that there was a price we paid to open up our mouths.

- Ruthie Berman, 85, holding a picture of her late wife

When I was 16, my mother, in true fashion of the 1950s, declared to me that if any of her children was queer, she would kill them... I knew that she was talking to me, and that was enough to put me in the closet.

- Robert Frew Jr., 77

It’s about who I fall in love with. Irrespective of gender, irrespective of race, irrespective of ethnicity and class. It’s about the person.

- Sonja Jackson, 69, (left) with her wife, Evelyn Jenkins Whitaker, 83

If I was to be my younger self I would relive my life the way I did then, that’s what’s made me today. I wouldn’t change a thing for the world because it’s me, who I am... a trans person of color.

- Victoria Cruz, 73

There’s never a time that I’ve come out to somebody that I haven’t just been as nervous as I could be. And that comes after a lifetime of working with people and their secrets.

- Russel Hiett, 73

The focus of a lot of, in terms of LGBTQ movement, has been on white, gay men. And not extended to people in the community who are women, who are of color, who are trans. And so, for a lot of those people it has not yet gotten better.

- Badili Jones-Goodhope, 62

Especially after Pulse, people are a little more aware of their surroundings, and a little bit more on guard than we used to be. I think you have to be vigilant.

- John Swallow, 73

The LGBT community has come a very, very long way. There’s still boundaries, but, right now, we should be satisfied and thankful for how far we have come.

- Robert Waldron, 79, (left) with his husband Vernon May, 79

In life things tend to show you not your wants but your needs. And, transitioning into Malaysia... has opened up a world of acceptance for me. Because now I am comfortable, and I’ve never been this comfortable in my life.

- Malaysia, 40

I’ve known a lot of transgender women that have been murdered. I know a lot of transgender women that just have it hard in their everyday life, period. I thank God for me. Some of those struggles... I didn’t go through.

- Serenity Lopez Lord, 31

It’s just not right how some people in the trans community are treated... People love who they love, so that’s how I feel.

- Donika Jackson, 30 (right), and her cousin Sylvia Gibson, 25, holding a picture of their late cousin, Chyna Gibson

Now that I pass as male, I have assumed male privilege in a very interesting way. I’ve assumed a privilege that I didn’t have before.

- Javi, 29

Who I am right now is an exploration of who I used to be and who I might be in the future. And so really gender-expansive is my favorite aspect of my identity right now.

- Spirit McIntyre, 41

I pray to somebody that she’ll see the light because my mom’s opinion is the only opinion that really matters to me. In a weird way, you know, I just want her to love me for who I am.

- Paxton Andrew Hail Francois, 25

The unfortunate reality for many LGBT youth is that they have to sacrifice so many things just to live authentically. For me, I’ve had to sacrifice the love of my father.

- Sophia Lee, 25

There’s no right way to be a man or woman. Masculinity is a spectrum, an array of entities, and my identity is so validated. I’m beautiful but no lady, intense and resilient, but not a him.

- Dom, 24

Growing up in the Mormon church, it really affected my mental health because I was all of these things they didn’t like. I was queer. I was trans. I didn’t know it at the time but I was.

- Julian, 22

Outside, you see my face and I’m just, I’m a regular person. I’m nonchalant. But inside I’m screaming for help. I’m really gasping for air because I feel like I can’t breathe. Like I really want help. Like somebody, just yo, just listen. Nothing. There was nothing.

- Peanut, 20

I’m finally free. I don’t have to walk around and pretend any more. I’m free. The weight on my shoulders and my heart are lifted. I don’t have to tolerate anyone’s intolerance.

- Kaiden M. Corbin, 20, (right), with his girlfriend, Arbrene Ellison, 18

If there’s any young woman who will be watching this, who is scared, who is fearful, who don’t know where to go find that one space in your heart to just say “I choose me,” and go for it.

- Nyella Love, 20